Learning to Laugh
by ididntdoit8302
Summary: Meet Saya. Hates pirates? Yes. Bounty hunter? Sort of. A sense of what's dangerous and what's not? ...let's not answer that. Stuck on the Going Merry, can the Straw Hats heal her heart? Rated for a little language, read if you want to know the pairing.
1. Entrance

**Author's Note: Hm... for my old readers, Saya's back for you to enjoy (no, my other story is NOT finished yet, but just thought I'd put this out)! For new readers, I hope you enjoy meeting Saya! Oh, I also know this is a little early to be asking this, but pairings! I have absolutely NO IDEA what to do, so please give me your suggestions!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.**

**Chapter One: The Entrance**

Saya sat in a bar, slowly sipping a low-alcoholic drink. She didn't really know what it was, and she didn't want to know either. Long experience had taught her that. It wasn't the best quality anyways, this bar.

Underneath dusty-brown bangs, blue eyes scanned the room carefully, looking for anyone suspicious. Odd jobs here and there provided the cash she had saved up, but there were always those people who seemed to have sticky fingers, and some men seemed to have nothing better to do than to bother girls. It was true she was rather attractive, but being short at age seventeen (5'2", to be exact) didn't really help her very much against the freakishly big ones who were like seven feet tall.

That's what the glaive strapped to her back was for. _Discouragement._

Odd jobs could also be translated to something a little more… unorthodox. Bounty hunting wasn't all that bad either, especially this far on the Grand Line.

A small brown bird sat on her head. It wasn't much bigger than a fist, but it looked around with bright, beady eyes, taking note of everything.

"Hey… it's not good to be here all alone at this time of night," a voice drawled. A huge arm wrapped around uninvited across her shoulders. Saya stiffened. "There're a lot of evil men around looking for a tidbit like yourself."

So much for discouragement.

"I don't like you," Saya said flatly. "You're too tall."

"Aren't you too short?"

Saya sighed dramatically. "If you don't go away, I might have to hurt you. Maybe."

The man laughed drunkenly, pinching her cheek. "Now me, I like my women tough! I think you and I will get along. But first, loose the bird. Nasty rats on wings," he said, flicking the poor bird hard. It cried out.

There was no time to think. No one really saw what happened next, but suddenly the pikestaff was out, and the heavy metal base of the staff had whacked him on the head. A spectacular bump bloomed out of the poor man's head as all eyes turned to the shining blade attached to the end of the steel staff.

Saya took a big gulp of the stuff she was drinking and stood with a grimace, neatly tucking the glaive back into its sheath strapped on her back in one fluid motion. "This place is a little too loud for me," she sighed, taking no notice of her shocked audience. Leaving her payment on the table, she left, not noticing the seven pairs of curious eyes on her from a table in the corner.

"Hey, you! How dare you hurt our friend?!" a voice yelled. Four men streamed out of the bar after her, all bearing weapons and fierce scowls. "Unforgivable!"

Saya's mouth twitched. "Melodramatic now, aren't we?"

"Bitch!" They all attacked at once, screaming their heads off.

"Idiots." It was a simple matter to take them all out with a simple swing of the flat of her glaive. She spat on the ground distastefully. "I don't like this town."

Suddenly, she was seeing stars, and everything went black. She heard a voice roar in fury.

"_What the hell are you doing?! Attacking from behind is dirty!"_

There was a glimpse of red vest and yellow straw hat, then she passed out completely.

* * *

Saya yawned and cracked open one eye. She was aware she was in a bed… hadn't she passed out on the street? Even more odd… there seemed to be a huge eyeball in front of her… no, make that two… 

Blink, blink, blink…

She suddenly yelled and sat bolt upright, cracking heads with the man who had been leaning curiously over her.

"OUCH!!" they both yelled. Then they stared at each other. "Who the hell are you?!" they chorused.

Saya scowled and looked the guy over. He looked like the type that couldn't stay in a bad mood for long. The frown he wore was already twitching at the corners. Red vest, rolled up jeans, sandals, jet-black hair and straw hat…

Blink, blink, blink…

Luffy (for of course it was he) grinned. "I'm Luffy! The man who's going to become the pirate king!"

"Eh?! You?!" Saya looked him over again… definitely not king material. "Shouldn't a king be more… um… er…"

An orange-haired girl came into Saya's sightline. "Hey, you're awake!"

Saya blinked. "Awake?"

Nami pointed to the cast on Saya's arm. "Your arm was broken before we could do anything, but our doctor took care of that."

Luffy grinned. "The little bird's okay. It wouldn't leave the room though, so we brought it food and some water."

The brown bird chirped from the bedpost contentedly. Saya stroked its head. "Brownie… thanks," she said, a rare smile on her face.

Sanji poked his head into the cabin. "Oh, she woke up?"

Hearts. Hearts. Hearts. Spinning hearts.

The blonde cook twirled in, a tray with pastries delicately balanced on his fingers, before he presented it to her. "With the fiery love of ten thousand suns, I present you with this 'Tray of Flowering Delight'."

"Scary…" Saya suddenly started looking around frantically. "My weapon! Where is it!?"

"Na?" Luffy tilted his head. "The stick with the knife?"

Saya hit Luffy on the head. "It's a PIKESTAFF, so call it that."

Luffy winced. "Okay, okay. A glaive. It's right there," he said, pointing next to the bed.

Saya sighed in relief, touching the pikestaff. It was a beautifully crafted weapon, the steel handle gleaming. Blue ripples ran under the blade, and the base was made out of heavy brass to balance the weapon. Right underneath the blade, two small round bells hung off little loops.

Chopper walked into the cabin, with a cup of tea. "Here," he said, holding it up. "Drink this."

Saya yelled and fell backwards. "The deer talked!"

"I'M NOT A DEER!! I'M A REINDEER!!"

Saya had just taken her first gulp of the tea when she suddenly choked, her eyes wide. "Wait… you said you wanted to become the pirate king?"

Luffy grinned. "Yup."

"Then that would mean… you're a pirate…"

"Yup."

Nami sweatdropped. "Took you long enough to figure that out…"

"Then…" Saya's blue eyes traveled slowly over the gathered people in the room. "Your nakama?"

"Yup."

Saya stiffened, then suddenly stood. The tea cup fell and crashed onto the floor. No one saw her move, but she was suddenly holding her glaive and pointing it towards them with a clearly practiced stance. She twirled it with her left hand, her expression completely different. A snarl was plastered on her face. "Let me go!" she spat.

"'Let you go'?" Luffy asked. "We're not forcing you to stay here."

Saya's hands tightened on her weapon. "I absolutely… hate pirates…" she growled.

"It's okay if you want to leave," Luffy said, "but we're in the middle of the ocean right now."

Further argument was interrupted by a green haired man walking into the room with a yawn. "There a problem?" he asked. Then he spotted the pikestaff-wielding girl with her back to the wall and raised an eyebrow. "Isn't she the one we saved from those thugs?"

Usopp poked his head in. "What's going o- AH!!" he yelled, spotting Saya with the weapon glinting with a deadly light in her hand. "W-W-What the hell?! Isn't she the one we saved-"

Saya scowled at Usopp. "You're so damn noisy, you pirate!" Her eyes had turned to ice. Usopp screeched and hid behind the doorway.

Out on the deck, Robin unconcernedly turned a page of her book.

"You can stay with us 'till we get to the next island," Luffy offered. "We'll drop you off."

"Don't lie! You're planning to slit my throat while I'm asleep, aren't you?"

"Slit your throat?! We wouldn't do that!" Nami cried. "We're not that sort of pirates!"

"Shut up!" Saya's eyes darkened. "This one and that one… all pirates are the same!"

Nami paled, hearing the words that had left her own mouth a long time go… from a different time and life.

"I… hate pirates," Saya muttered. "If you want to know, there's only one thing that's kept me going." Her eyes were dark, almost beyond recognition. Dark anger radiated off of her like a tangible wave. "I can't rest… until all pirates are dead. That's the only way I can apologize to my Nii-san!"

Luffy tilted his head. "With a broken arm?"

"A broken arm won't slow me down."

Everyone remained quiet, letting Luffy deal with it. The captain grinned. "Okay. I don't want to hurt Merry, so sail with us to the next island, then we can have our fight."

"How far to the next island?"

All eyes turned to Nami, who grinned. "Four weeks."

Brownie cheeped and perched on the tip of Saya's glaive. She got the message and grudgingly lowered the blade. "You going to confiscate my weapon or something?"

Luffy looked confused. "Why?"

Saya blinked. "Are you stupid?" she demanded, more out of surprise than anything.

"YES," the rest of the crew responded simultaneously.

Nami walked over and pulled Luffy's face. "There aren't many blockheads who are like him, but he is our captain, after all. We have to abide by his word, so you get to keep your weapon. Please don't kill us all with it."

Staaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaare…

"What the hell, his face stretched!!" Saya yelled.

Luffy freed his face. "I ate the Gomu Gomu no Mi."

"A… Devil's Fruit user…"

"Yup."

Saya sat, then winced. Chopper scurried forwards. "Don't push yourself! Your arm's going to take a few weeks to heal."

She jerked her arm away from him, sweat standing out on her face from the pain. "Stay away from me, pirate!"

"Don't do that!" Chopper yelled. "What'll you do if it heals out of shape?!"

"I don't want help from pirates!"

"But it's going to take two weeks. You'll need to eat," Sanji said, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not eating the same food you eat. As long as you let me see the sea and sky, I can live."

Luffy grinned. "That's fine. Then what's your name?"

Saya grinned back, though there was no trace of happiness in her face. "Hanabi Saya. And now that I've told you, once we have our fight, you know you're going to die."

"Well that's not fair," Luffy pointed out. "If I win, you have to give me something."

Saya's face darkened. "What? Do you need an assassin? Or maybe some rival pirates to disappear?" She narrowed her eyes. "I can do that."

Luffy blinked. "Why would I need to do any of that?"

"What else would you want?" Saya said bitterly. "You pirates are like that."

Nami smiled. "I can see why you would think that way, but we're not that kind of pirate."

Saya rolled her eyes. "If I had a beli for every time I've heard that…"

Nami's grin had a little more than a little grim humor to it. "It actually wasn't too long ago that I thought the same way myself."

Saya met her gaze steadily. "I guess your conviction wasn't that strong then."

"WHAT WAS THAT?!"

Luffy held Nami back from killing the shorter brown-haired girl. "Nami! Don't kill her!"

Nami was furious. "Why you… you bitch! Don't say things like that without knowing anything!"

Saya rolled her eyes.

That was too much for Nami. She pulled free of Luffy and took out her Clima Tact-

But it was no sooner assembled than it was knocked out of her hands. Saya was standing, her pikestaff hanging lazily from her left hand. "Let's get this straight, pirate," Saya said coldly. "I am not your usual opponent."

"Dear me," said a voice from the door. Everyone turned to look at Robin, who was wearing her usual gentle smile. "Could I say we have the Coldhearted Lioness as our guest?"

Saya's face was emotionless. "Perhaps."

"Pikestaff and sparrow. There are not many people who travel with that combination of items," Robin commented.

With a casual wave of her hand, Saya dismissed the comment. "Let's make this perfectly clear. I want nothing to do with you guys. As long as I have to stay with you guys on this ship, I'll tolerate you, but only as long as we have minimal contact. Understand?"

"Hm, is that so?" Luffy tilted his head.

"It's pointless," Zoro said. "Wherever you go, these guys'll probably follow you around until you go crazy."

"No they won't," Saya retorted, her eyes cold and blank. The bird flapped and flew, before perching on her head. "If they do, you'll all die before the day of the fight. Starting with the one who annoyed me the most. Got that?"

Usopp and Chopper yelled and ran out of the room. Luffy peered at her curiously, his 'working something out' face on.

Saya flinched and glared at the captain. "What're you looking at me for?"

Luffy's eyes never wavered, and for a rare moment, he was oddly serious. "Saya, how'd you get hurt so bad?"

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?!" Saya snapped. Sweat stood out on her face; she was noticeably unsettled by Luffy's steady gaze. She knew it, and her defensive walls went even higher, if that was possible. "What sort of shit are you throwing up?" she growled. "That bastard broke my arm. You saw it."

No one said anything. The atmosphere had changed dramatically, but it was obvious that the hurt Luffy was talking about wasn't her arm.

Chopper poked his head around the doorframe nervously. "I-It'll be better for you if you stay here," he said, still terrified of supposed 'Coldhearted Lioness'. "If you take it easy, your arm will heal faster."

Luffy was still staring at Saya, and she was staring right back. He could see hatred and loathing in her eyes, and… pain? He adjusted his straw hat. "Okay, we'll leave you alone," he said, turning and walking out of the room. "Sanji, give her food."

Sanji sucked in a long breath on his cigarette and let the smoke out with a grin. "Right."

Saya scowled. "I won't eat it you know," she growled.

"Well you can't say we didn't give you food after this trip, 'kay?" Luffy said, turning and giving her a huge grin.

"Whatever."

* * *

"Hey Luffy, what're we going to do about that girl?" Usopp demanded. "She's dangerous!" 

Luffy laughed. "It's fine, it's fine! She said she was going to stay in that room, and when she does come out, it'll be okay! Everything'll work out somehow!"

Nami growled. "I don't like her."

Zoro cracked open an eye. "Well, I could understand that, after what you've been through and then her saying something like that."

Robin smiled. "I've heard rumors. She's sort of a bounty hunter, but she rarely collects the bounty, only enough to pay for her food and lodgings. She only kills it seems... just to kill."

Silence...

"WHAAAT?!" Usopp and Chopper dived under the table.

Sanji sighed. "My beautiful doll, Saya-chan, how much pain you must be in!"

Zoro sweatdropped. "Someone with a grudge, huh? And why a doll, you dartboard brow?"

"She's a small and delicate beauty, like a dream," Sanji said, hearts in his eyes. "Robin-chan, Nami-san, you aren't jelous, are you?"

Robin chuckled. "Not at all."

Nami was still fuming. "Who cares? I'm really pissed at her right now..."

Luffy wasn't smiling or anything. His face was expressionless, still figuring something out.

**Next: It's hard to stay tense when you're with the Straw Hat pirates. With gourmet food, random bouts of yelling and being beaten up, and laughter, how long can someone stay deathly serious? The answer... not long.**

**Okay! I don't know how well this'll turn out, but please leave your comments!**


	2. Idiot Crew

**Author's Note: Yay, snuck onto the computer for an hour to write this, I'm technically on computer ban, but still... I wanted to write this. Hehe... enjoy!**

**Mewgirl35: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!**

**JuniperScaymoore: One Piece one of the awesomest shows EVER!! XD Keep watching it!**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Yes, Saya-ness!! She gets more back to Saya as the story goes on. **

**Dark Blood Alchemist: I updated!**

**unexpectably insane: More crazy Nami in this chapter I guarantee you. XD**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Two: Idiot Crew

That night, Sanji made up an extra plate of food for their guest. He knocked on the door. "Saya-chan, I'm coming in," he called, going into the room.

The brown-haired girl didn't respond at all. She ignored him. The bird looked at him with an apologetic little chirp.

Sanji made a little more attempt at conversation, but he soon saw it was pointless and left the room. It was like talking to the bed itself.

The food… Saya tried to ignore it, but the smell of it made her stomach rumble, reminding her that she had not eaten all day, nor the previous day come to think of it… besides that disgusting drink…

She clenched her teeth and hit her head. "Dammit."

When Sanji returned to the room later though, the plate was clean. After he had picked up the plates and turned to leave, he heard a throat clear and turned. Saya wasn't looking at him, but instead of angry, she looked more uncomfortable than anything. "Thanks for the food," she mumbled. "It was good."

Sanji grinned broadly. "It's my pleasure."

Saya didn't respond. It was already too much effort to have spoken to him at all.

* * *

Five days passed in this manner. Life continued as usual on the Going Merry, and true to his word, Luffy gave Saya the space she had demanded. Usopp and Chopper did too, but that's because they were scared to death of her.

Saya heard daily life going on around on the ship: meaning heated arguments, people getting beaten up, futile attempts to keep some sense of order, and Luffy yelling for food. To tell the truth, it was all rather un-pirate-like. This crew had no organization whatsoever…

Just because she had a broken arm was no reason for slacking off though. She stayed in shape by doing practice dances with her pikestaff, even if they had to be improvised somewhat because she could only use her left hand.

"Hey, ZORO!" Luffy would roar. "Quit sleeping and let's play!"

"Play, play!" Usopp and Chopper laughed.

"Just how old are you morons?!" Zoro demanded.

Leaning back, she tried to ignore it. But since she was left alone, there was time to think… too much time. Her thoughts went as far as thinking that these guys might be different from other pirates, but she quickly dismissed the thought. Pirates were pirates.

In her memory, hot blood was suddenly dripping onto her face… blood that wasn't hers. A dark shadow against a world of flames, and a downward chopping axe… and the horrible sound of a blade cutting through flesh…

She tried to go to sleep, but didn't have much success.

* * *

Usopp tried his luck a week after they had set sail. He cautiously poked his nose into the room. "Um, it's Saya, right? Isn't it a little boring staying in this room all the time?" he asked while hiding behind the doorframe, in case she reached for her pikestaff again.

Saya ignored him. But truth be told, she was bored out of her mind, and trying to figure these guys out was giving her a headache. She had never been confined in such a comfortable place for this long a time since that day, which sounded odd. She didn't say anything though, just turned her head and glared at him.

Usopp fled.

Strangely, late that night, Zoro walked in without even inviting himself. "Wasn't the deal to let you see the sea and sky?" he asked dryly. "But you're shutting yourself in here of your own accord."

She ignored him… or tried to. Her nerves were humming, like they would for combat. Brownie chirped sleepily on her shoulder, and she stroked him absentmindedly. Brownie's instincts for people were good, but this guy was a _pirate_…

Zoro sighed in exasperation and started to walk out of the room, when she actually spoke. "Where's the rest of your nakama? Is this some sort of trap or something?"

"Not really." Zoro turned and grinned. "We told you already, we're not those type of pirates. As for those other idiots, they're all asleep. I'm just on guard duty tonight." He left.

After a moment's pause, Saya got out of the bed. It was completely quiet outside when she crept outside; extremely rare, especially on THIS ship.

A moment later, she heard the thunderous snores emitting from the ship's hold. Maybe not so quiet after all…

Relieved, she took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the salty air of the sea. Apart from the snoring, she could hear the gentle lapping of waves on the side of the ship, and even with the snores, it was… relaxing. It might be nice to stay here for a while… maybe even get to know-

She shook her head. This wasn't it… this wasn't… she still had something to finish. What the hell was she thinking? These guys were pirates! And _that guy _wasn't dead yet.

* * *

"SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANJIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! FOOD!!"

The sea-shattering roar woke up the entire ship the next morning. Saya woke up so violently, she hit her head on the ceiling.

"SHUT THE HELL UP, YOU IDIOT!!" The resultant kicks and bangs shook the entire ship in the ocean.

She rubbed her head and groaned. Forgetting where she was, she slammed the door open and roared, "HEY!! Can't you guys be any more quiet than this when it's so damn early?! The sun's not even up yet!"

There was an absolute stop. Everyone froze and turned to look at her.

Saya suddenly blushed and clenched her left hand on the railing. "Well, uh…"

Luffy grinned. "Oh good! You decided to come out!"

"I… I…" Saya started trembling. "You guys…" She looked away. "I'll admit… you guys are different, a little," she said as if her teeth hurt to say it. "However, you guys are still pirates! That means I don't have to take any crap from you!"

Robin chuckled. "Dear me."

Usopp and Chopper hid behind the mast.

Zoro was indifferent, and continued his pre-breakfast nap.

Luffy laughed. "Hey, hey! Wanna play tag?"

Saya's eye twitched. "T… tag…?"

"It's really fun! Don't you know how to play?"

"Well… that's…" Saya's face turned red, but it didn't seem to be from hostility. "Aren't you a little old for that?"

"You're just scared you're going to loose," Luffy laughed.

A stress mark appeared on Saya's head. "What… was… that…?!"

Usopp went hid farther behind the mast. "Why do I have a bad feeling about this…?"

"She's scared she's going to loose!" Luffy sang.

"Why you!!" Saya's pikestaff appeared in her hand as if summoned. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!"

Luffy laughed and ran all over the ship, the feisty shorty on his heels. He dodged every swing she gave him…

As the chase went on, however, the atmosphere changed, just a little. Brownie perched on one of Chopper's antlers, crying.

Chopper looked up at the little bird. "Hm? Why are you crying?"

Without thinking, he automatically and translated Brownie's answer for everyone who was listening. "'I've… I've never seen Saya so happy before!'"

You could've heard a pin drop, before Luffy and Saya came charging through them again, Saya actually cutting off a lock of Luffy's hair with the pikestaff before they swung around to the other side of the ship again.

Usopp was the first to recover. "She's… _happy_?!" he choked.

The bird nodded, still crying.

Nami chuckled a little. "Well, I could understand that… a little…"

"YOU STRAW HAT BASTARD GET BACK HERE! WHEN I CATCH YOU, YOU'RE GOING TO DIE, YOU HEAR ME?! DIE!!"

The navigator sweatdropped as Saya succeeded in throwing Luffy over the side of the ship by grabbing his arm and swinging him like a sling. He flew at least fifty meters, screaming the entire way, before he crashed into the ocean. "Or not…"

Luffy started thrashing in the water. "HELP MEEEE!! I CAN'T SWIM, I'M A HAMMER!!"

Saya rolled her eyes. "Well doesn't this make my job easier," she said darkly, walking away from the edge of the ship. "If he's a Hammer, then he'll drown and I won't have to exert myself fighting him."

"YOU DEMON!" the whole crew yelled.

"Demon or not, I'd have killed him anyways," Saya huffed. "It's none of my concern." She walked away from the ship's banister.

"S-SABE BEEEEE!! (Save me!)" Luffy glugged. "Sobone blez sabe be! (Someone please save me!)" Then he went under.

"That idiot!" Zoro growled, diving overboard.

About thirty seconds later, a considerably fatter Luffy and a soaking-wet Zoro came back on board. Zoro took off his shirt and wrung it out irritably while stomping on Luffy's stomach. A fountain of water spat out of Luffy's mouth. And another. And another. And another…

Saya perched on the rail, Brownie sitting on her shoulder. "Oh? He's alive? What a shame."

"What the hell is your problem?!" Zoro snapped.

She shrugged. "He was annoying me."

"THAT'S NOT A GOOD REASON TO KILL SOMEONE!!"

Sanji puffed on his cigarette. "Hey, hey, with a captain like him, that's not quite a bad idea…"

No one really objected. Saya looked around, a frown on her face. "What's with you guys? He's your captain, right? He's supposed to be more… dignified, isn't he?"

Nami refused to talk to the new girl, instead huffing and turning her back. Robin chuckled. "This crew is somewhat different, little miss."

Saya sweatdropped slightly. 'Somewhat' didn't really seem to fit the tone quite right… Suddenly she withdrew back into herself with a violent jerk. What the hell was she doing?! Brownie fluttered into the air in alarm as she ran back into her room, slamming the door behind her. She leaned against the door, breathing hard. What the hell was she doing?! What the hell! She had let her guard down! On a _pirate _ship!! Just who were these people?!

Brownie fluttered frantically around before settling on the rigging. Zoro sweatdropped. "What the hell's her problem?" he grumbled.

Brownie chirped. "'She's scared of you guys,'" Chopper translated.

Sanji blinked. "Scared? Why does she have to be scared of us? She's our guest."

Luffy clapped his sandals together irritably. "Tell us, bird," he demanded.

"'She's never met anyone like you before, people she could have fun with. Actually, the reason she hates pirates so much is because on that day, pirates k-"

Suddenly, the door flew open and the pikestaff came soaring out. A small feather fluttered to the ground as a shell-shocked Brownie fell to the floor, a small bald patch on his head. It was met with much screeching and screaming on the crew's part, especially Usopp because it flew an inch from cutting his nose off.

The pikestaff embedded itself into the mast and stayed, there, quivering, as Saya came out, her eyes blazing. "Brownie, that's quite enough from you," she hissed.

Brownie cheeped meekly on the floor.

"Good." Saya scooped him up and placed him on her shoulder. Her eyes had lost all their fury, just to be replaced by dull exhaustion. She turned her eyes to Luffy. "Don't forget about our fight. My arm is almost recovered."

Chopper was hiding behind the mast, but he plucked up enough courage to speak up. "That's not true! Your arm is going to take at least another couple weeks to heal!"

Luffy grinned. "I haven't forgotten. Don't forget your side of the deal too! You loose, you become our nakama!"

Saya bristled even more, if that was even possible. "I'm not going to loose," she snapped. "Especially not to an idiot like you!"

Luffy's good-natured grin only intensified, and he gave her a thumbs-up. "Sure!"

Nami punched Luffy's head into the mast. "That means you're agreeing with her, dimwit!" she shouted. "Is it really _okay_ for us to be giving a ride to someone who plans to kill you, Luffy?!"

"I'd be long gone if it wasn't for my arm!" Saya snapped, hitting the banister.

"And YOU!" Nami roared, turning on Saya. "We're letting you freeload off us and letting you ride with us, and you're planning to kill our captain! What sort of deal is this?!"

"It's not like I want to!" Saya roared right back. "He's a pirate, and so are the rest of you! It was your decision to become pirates, so I'm your enemy!"

As they continued to yell at each other, alternately slamming their hands on the banister, Robin glanced at them and chuckled at their difference in height.

Usopp waved his hand slightly as he hid behind the mast. "Hey, go easy on Merry…"

Neither woman heard him, continuing to roar at one another.

Zoro cracked open an eye, watching Saya curiously. Something she had said was irking him somewhat… He yawned and went back to sleep. If Luffy did decide to make her a part of the crew, then whatever. It didn't have anything to do with _him_.

Luffy tilted his head, frowning and watching as Saya and Nami still continued to roar. "Hey… what are you guys arguing over?" he asked, confused.

"SHUT UP YOU!" they roared, punching him off the ship. With their combined strength, Luffy flew for at least 100 meters before landing with much fuss in the ocean.

Zoro cracked open an eye again. "Again? That's twice in one day…"

"S-SABE BEEEE!!!"

Little hearts were flying out of Sanji's cigarette. "Such beautiful strength…"

"Idiot," Zoro muttered.

"I'B KINKIN'!! (I'm sinking!) SABE BEE!!"

"WHAT WAS THAT, YOU MARIMO HEAD?!"

Brownie chirped and fluttered frantically, sharing in Chopper's screaming. "LUFFY SANK!! LUFFY SANK!! WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?! LUFFY SANK!!"

"Bastard, you looking for a fight?" Sanji growled. "Who're you calling an idiot?!"

"I forget."

"LUFFY'S SINKING!! LUFFY'S DROWNING!!"

"SABE BEEE!!"

Saya sweatdropped. "What… the hell is wrong… with this crew…?"

**Next: Arrival at the next island... why is Saya suddenly refusing to get off the ship?**


	3. Daizuke Island

**Author's Note: Okay, I really, really want suggestions for pairings!! Please, I want your opinions, those of you who are reading this story! Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving!**

**JuniperScaymoore: I want pairings! I need ideas! Thanks for your PM!! And you won't need to wait as long as you did in Catching Falling Stars for fluff!**

**Dark Blood Alchemist: I'm glad you liked it! I really did try to make it funny, just to accociate Saya more with the crew.**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Yeah... I actually sort of did that on purpose. But I am somewhat more experienced now, so no one can accuse me of making Saya a Mary Sue... in this story at least, hopefully. Hehe...**

**SoDesuKa: Thanks for the review! I'm going to make it as interesting as I possibly can, evil plot twists (and good ones too, I guess) are going on in my head. XD But you'll have to wait to find out what they are!**

**unexpectably insane: Personally, I don't know the answer to that question myself because they SEEM so dysfunctional, but they're really more functional than most when you think about it. It's sort of backwards.**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: Who gives a crap about homework to begin with? I know that I don't. XD Unfortunately, we students are required to do it until we're out of school if we want good grades. TT-TT**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Three: Daizuke Island

A couple days later, the temperature dropped sharply. The coats and wool-lined boots were brought out fairly quickly, and that afternoon, it started snowing gently. Saya went outside underneath the mikan trees, avoiding the crew. It was the first time she had went out of her room without her pikestaff, but she tried not to think about what that might mean, preferring to focus on the snow. Snow… now that brought back memories…

_"Nii-san, that's not fair! You've had a million turns with the sled already!"_

_"We're having equal turns though."_

_"I have it going up, and you always have it going down!"_

_"See? Equal turns!"_

_"NO IT'S NOT!"_

She shook her head irritably. Those times were long over, it wouldn't do any good to long for them. Brownie chirped and shivered on her shoulder. Saya absentmindedly covered him with her hand, offering her warmth. He nuzzled against her hand gratefully before fluttering off.

Luffy was exulting in the snow as it piled on the deck. She wondered if being rubber kept him from being cold, since he was only wearing his red vest, rolled jeans, sandals, and of course, the straw hat. He and Usopp made an unbelievably large and obnoxious snowman, and were having a snowball fight.

Nami shook her fist at them. "Can't you guys be more quiet?!"

"It's fine, it's fine!" Luffy laughed.

Nami gave up. She pulled her coat more tightly around herself and grumbled. "How the hell can they be so energetic?" she muttered, leaning on the banister and watching them pelt each other with snowballs.

One stray snowball hit the sleeping Zoro in the face. He choked and sat bolt upright. "Alright, which one of you bastards threw it?!" he growled.

Luffy and Usopp both looked away, whistling in the whole 'why-Zoro-what-on-earth-are-you-talking-about' manner.

Zoro clenched his teeth and threw snowballs at the both of them. Unfortunately, they both dodged. The snowballs flew up to hit Chopper and Sanji, who were in the crow's nest.

Robin looked up from her book and chuckled. "Oh my," she smiled.

In retaliation, Sanji and Chopper combined forces, making an impossibly huge snowball and dropping it down onto Zoro. It cracked into a million pieces as it hit the swordsman's head, burying him in snow. He leapt up with a roar. "What the hell!"

Snowballs flew back and forth between the crow's nest and the deck. Luffy and Usopp were laughing hysterically, Chopper was screaming, Zoro and Sanji were bellowing death threats, Nami was trying to ignore it all, and Robin sprouted hands that made snowballs for the boys to throw at one another.

So it was in this way that a spectacular snowball fight bloomed on the deck of the Going Merry.

It was Usopp's bad luck that one of his snowballs hit the unsuspecting Saya in the head. Everything froze.

Saya slowly brushed the snow off her head and hair. Usopp trembled and ran behind the mast for protection.

Surprisingly, Saya didn't do anything. She just stood up and walked back into her room without a word.

Everyone waited for something to happen, but nothing did. There were no flying pikestaffs or roaring death threats. The door closed, and that was that.

More than a little confused, the participants of the snowball fight went back to doing their own things. Sanji and Chopper resumed watch, Nami went back to pouring over her maps, Luffy and Usopp started building a huge snow monster-dinosaur thing, Zoro went back to sleep, and Robin continued to read her book (not like she had stopped, anyways…). It was unsettling. Saya would have normally done something… drastic…

Zoro was trying to go back to sleep, but the thing Saya had said a few days ago was bothering him, when she had been arguing with Nami…

_"We're letting you freeload off us and letting you ride with us, and you're planning to kill our captain! What sort of deal is this?!"_

_"It's not like I want to! He's a pirate, and so are the rest of you! It was your decision to become pirates, so I'm your enemy!"_

_It's not like I want to…_ He mused over that for a while before he gave up. Thinking at the moment was too hard. He yawned and this time, really did go back to sleep.

"Kokaishi (Navigator)-san," Robin called.

Nami looked up. "What's up?'

"Do you think, perhaps, we are getting close to a winter island? The climate seems to have stabilized."

Nami nodded. "Probably. Sanji-kun, Chopper! Keep a lookout for an island!" she called.

"Sure thing!"

Saya sat on a chair and hugged her knees tightly. It was odd… she had a sense of impending doom about the next destination… and if the last several years had taught her anything, it was to trust her instincts. Her hands clenched, and Brownie chirped worriedly on her shoulder. After contemplating a moment, he stuck his cold beak into her ear, surprising something that almost sounded like a laugh out of her.

* * *

Saya's instincts were not wrong at all. As soon as she saw the island, she knew it immediately for what it was. 

Luffy was ecstatic. He had put on a crimson jacket after being yelled at by the rest of the crew. The conversation had went something like this...

_"Hey, Luffy, aren't you cold?" Sanji asked._

_"What the hell are you doing in only your vest?!" Nami demanded. "It's almost -20 degrees Celcius!"_

_"She's got a point," Usopp said. "You should be freezing!"_

_Luffy had blinked and looked around at all of them, confused for a moment, before he suddenly grabbed himself and started shivered. "It's cold!"_

_"YOU ABSOLUTE MORON!"_

"It looks like a dolphin!" he whooped. A slightly curved and somewhat flat mountain provided the dorsal fin shape, and a curved general shape provided the body.

Nami checked a map. "This is Daizuke Island, according to this map," she said. "It's a fairly small island, so it's probably a good place to restock."

Listening from inside her room, Saya froze solid. Daizuke… the one place she had never wanted to see again. And now she was here. Perfect. Just_ perfect._

But staying on a ship of pirates was better… _much _better… than what she knew was waiting for her on this island.

The Straw Hats were surprised, to say the least, when Saya refused to set foot on the beach. They had anchored in a small cove, about a mile away from the small coastal town that sat on the sea.

Nami was especially irritated. "You spent the entire trip here complaining about how badly you wanted to get off the ship, and now that you can, you decide you want to stay here after all! What the hell is WRONG with you?!"

Brownie flapped his wings. He flew in circles around Saya's head like an absurd, feathered moon of some kind.

Saya wasn't looking at any of them. "I'm not getting off," she mumbled.

Brownie chirped frantically, signaling to Chopper. Chopper translated. "'Please, don't make Saya get off here! This is where she grew up and wher-'"

Saya snatched Brownie out of the air and pressed his beak shut. "DON'T," she said dangerously.

Brownie cheeped meekly.

Luffy blinked. "You grew up here?"

"That has nothing to do with you!" Saya growled. "Do you hear me?! _Nothing._"

Zoro narrowed his eyes, but didn't say anything.

"Another thing," Saya snapped. "If you tell anyone in town, and I mean _anyone_, I'm here, then all of you will die."

Luffy grinned. "Well, everyone dies eventually."

Saya was taken aback by this. She bit her lip and slammed into her room.

Brownie chirped and flew in circles before settling on Chopper's antler. "'Please,'" Chopper translated. "'We can't get off here. It would destroy her.'"

Robin blinked. "Why would that be?"

Brownie clamped his beak shut and refused to say anything else.

Nami sighed and shrugged. "It's quite obvious, isn't it?" she stated. "This is where she was born. She hates pirates. Pirates must've come here and attacked this island, and she survived somehow."

Luffy grinned and started marching down the road, a line of footprints following him in the snow. "Let's go tell the people that she's come back then!" he said. "I bet they'll be glad to see her!"

"LUFFY!"

It was too late. He was already far, far, far down the path leading to town. The crew chased after him, leaving Robin behind to guard the ship against their return.

* * *

"Hanabi Saya?" one of the townspeople asked, looking confused. "The Coldhearted Lioness?" 

Luffy grinned. "Yup. You know her?"

The man shook his head. "But you'll find that most people here haven't actually been here that long. Most of us settled here about four or five years ago."

"Why?" Luffy piped up.

The man grinned sheepishly. "To tell you the truth, I don't know myself. But there's still some people around who've been around here before us. The bartender, for example," he said, waving a hand towards a rather shabby-looking bar. "And the herb woman, but that's pretty much it."

"Alright!" Luffy crowed. "Let's go talk to the bartender then!" And without further ado, he marched off towards the bar.

The rest of the crew, having just caught up to their impulsive captain, groaned and wearily trudged after him.

* * *

Brownie and Robin sat side by side. Brownie was perched on the rigging, Robin was leaning on the banister and reading a book. Well… Robin had the book open in her hand, but she wasn't exactly reading it. She was peering at Brownie. Brownie was sweating and glancing at Robin out of the corner of his eye. 

Silence…

More sweating…

Staring and sweating…

Brownie finally cheeped meekly. "Cheep. Cheep chee ch cheep."

Robin smiled. "I'm sorry, I can't understand what you're saying," she said apologetically.

"…cheep…"

A door opened, and Saya walked out, facing Robin. "I'm a sometimes bounty-hunter you know," she said frankly. "I know who you are, Nico Robin. A 79,000,000 Beli bounty, who's been wanted for twenty years by the World Government. I know you're not exactly a pirate because you've hidden yourself from society for those past twenty years…"

Robin nodded. That explained why Saya was willingly talking with her at all. "Yes, though currently I am a member of the Straw Hat crew. Did you want to ask me something?"

Saya stiffened. "Well… yes, actually. I have no interest in your bounty or your past, but I wanted to know…" She looked away, turning a little red. "Why'd you put your lot in with a lot of idiots like them? Why do you stay here?"

Robin considered the question a moment before she smiled. "They're idiots, yes, but they're dependable idiots. They'll always come through in a pinch… and the reason I stay here is because I like it here. Sencho (Captain)-san doesn't ask me to do anything; he doesn't try to make my goals his goals. Everyone follows their own path, and tries to achieve their own dreams, but through all this time together, it's almost like another purpose has begun to bloom, a purpose separate from all of us." She chuckled softly. "Though, I'm not sure what that is myself."

Saya mulled over that for a moment before giving up and looking at the sky. "Damn. I'm not one for philosophical thinking like this. Give me something I can touch and beat up instead. But it is a strange way to run a crew, isn't it?"

Robin chuckled. "Yes. Yes, it is. But that's partially why it works, I suppose."

"Probably…" Saya sighed. "Pity."

Robin looked up. "Well, now that I have answered a question of yours, you may answer one of mine."

Saya stiffened. She could tell what it was going to be, and she didn't like it. Not at all.

"Do you really plan on killing Sencho-san? Because I, for one, doubt that you are."

Saya swallowed, her throat suddenly tight. Killing the captain of a ship almost certainly meant the undoing of the crew… She had done it before, ruthlessly and coldly. She knew what happened afterwards. This crew might be… different… but still… He's a pirate. He has to die," she said flatly. "But, I…"

Robin nodded slowly. "Okay," she said, acknowledging that Saya didn't want to say more. "Okay."

* * *

"WHAT?! Are you serious?!" 

The crew was staring at the wrinkled old bartender, who just kept on cleaning a dirty old glass in his hands. "Yes, you heard me right," he said in a croaky voice. "You guessed right, there was a pirate raid here, about eight years ago. Saya was about nine, and it was even her tenth birthday. She doesn't know anyone besides herself survived."

"Why the hell didn't you _tell_ her that you were alive, that there were survivors?!" Zoro demanded, seeming more than a little irritated. His crewmates threw few curious glances were thrown his direction, but he didn't notice.

The rest of the crew was equally agitated. "You know how much pain she must have carried?!"

"That's right!" Luffy slapped the bar loudly, silencing everyone else. "Ossan, that wasn't nice!"

The bartender actually looked up for the first time, staring at Luffy. His jaw dropped open. "Y-you… said Saya was traveling with you… but you're… Straw Hat Luffy!! A pirate!!"

Luffy blinked. "Yeah. So?"

"LUFFY!!" Nami smacked her captain's head. "If you haven't seen before now, she hates pirates!"

"Why?" Luffy asked.

"What do you mean 'why'?! It's because…" Nami trailed off, realizing for once Luffy actually had a point. "Well... it's because…"

All heads turned towards the bartender. "Why _does_ she hate pirates?" they chorused.

The bartender started sweating. "Ah… well… that is…"

Luffy stretched and grabbed a stool, seating himself on it as it flew towards him. "Okay, tell!"

"Why do you ask?" the barkeeper demanded. "She your nakama or something?"

Everyone grinned. Even Usopp managed a shaky smile. Luffy laughed. "Not yet, but she will be after I beat her!"

The barkeeper's jaw dropped open. "B… b-beat her?! Are you really going to do that?"

Luffy's smile broadened. "Don't worry! I'm strong!"

"I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU!" the old man bellowed. "Do you understand what it would do to her to be beaten by someone?!"

Everyone blinked.

The barkeeper clutched his head. "If you do that here, on this island, she's going to… she'll be destroyed."

"_Please! We can't get off here! It would destroy her!"_

Nami leaned forward. "That's not the first time we've heard that. Why? What happened here?" she demanded.

Luffy adjusted his straw hat and suddenly got up and started walking out.

Usopp looked at him. "Luffy?"

"I'm not interested in her past," Luffy said, his eyes hidden by the brim of his hat. He walked out of the bar.

"W-wait a minute! Where are you going?"

"For a walk." The doors swung shut behind him.

The barkeeper blinked, watching him leave. "Quite a funny guy your captain is," he commented. "Will he be alright? This is a World Government island, after all, even if it is small."

Nami shrugged. "He's always like that. Now… tell us. What really did happen that hurt Saya so much here?"

The old man sighed. "Very well." The crew shifted into more comfortable positions to listen as he began the story. "Eight years ago, Saya was an ordinary child on this island. She lived here, only with her older brother…"

**Next: The freezing of Saya's heart… and a nasty run in with some World Government officials.**

**REMEMBER, I WANT SUGGESTIONS FOR PAIRINGS!!! And Happy Thanksgiving! Remember not to go shopping tomorrow, Black Friday and all...**


	4. Frozen Heart

**Author's Note: WHOA!! I've got TEN reviews?! Yay!! 'dances insanely' Thank you for your suggestions on pairings! I have to say, yes the floor is still open for more suggestions, primarily the ones I have recieved are LuffyxSaya and ZoroxSaya. **

**SoDesuKa: I'm glad! Maybe this chapter will get you interested even more! Yes, it does tell about Saya's past... but I almost cried while writing it to tell the truth...**

**Mewgirl35: Yes, the giant snowball. I wish I could do that!! Though... it sort of defies common sense that there was enough snow up there for them to make a ball that big but whatever!! This is ONE PIECE, after all!! XD**

**Dark Blood Alchemist: Yup, that was Zoro. Green hair... I heard a rumor that he dyes it green and it's acually pink... 'lightbulb' I have an ideeeeeeeeea!! Mwahahaha...**

**Mr. Thumbsup: She's coming back, she is, I promise!! Though when you read this chapter, you might see how she became like that to begin with.**

**yuMeNami: Okay! I'll be sure to keep that pairing in mind!**

**JuniperScaymoore: OMG YOU SIGNED IN! Dear me, I think the world is ending! XD jkjk. Wii's are awesome, but I really stink at it. I can beat anyone in Super Smash Bros on Gamecube though!**

**The Faerie of Darkness: Whee, I bought my Snowball dress yesterday! (Snowball's one of the dances my school sponsers, it's really, really fun!) I'm working on the eff em ay movie, but I'm procrastinating for two reasons: I need to think of the best way to tie Saya in, and I really don't want it to end. TT.TT**

**talent2max (anon): Thank you! I'm glad you love my story, I have to admit, I'm pretty fond of it too. XD **

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: I'll keep that pairing in mind, I promise! But there's been some outcry against that particular one...**

**unexpectably insane (anon): I'm sorry I made you late for work!! Suggestion, put a little time aside for this chapter, because it's kinda long... take my advice so you're not late for work this time!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Four: Frozen Heart

The barkeeper sighed. "I suppose… if you all call yourselves her nakama, know that saying that isn't a light thing," he warned. "In the whole world… I don't think there's a more painful word for her in the entire world. Family, love, friendship, nakama… she abandoned all those things a long time ago."

"So what happened?" Nami demanded.

The old man closed his eyes for a moment before he began to speak. "Many years ago, before the raid, Saya lived in this town with her older brother. They lived by themselves, since their parents had both died of illness…"

* * *

Stretched out on her bed, Saya stared dully at the ceiling as the ship bobbed ever so slightly in the water. Absentmindedly, she slipped off her cast and tested her hand. Whatever that stuff the reindeer had made her eat was, it sure did the job. Her arm was as good as new. 

Her pikestaff leaned in one corner, the blade secured in its sheath. The small bell at the end chimed faintly, throwing her backwards through time, reliving through memories she had not dared to touch since leaving this island… almost eight years ago…

* * *

"Nii-san! Nii-san!" Nine-year-old Saya went running up the street into the bar. The sun gleamed down, reflecting off the snow that blanketed the world and a pair of small footprints. "Hey, old man, do you know where Nii-san is?" 

A younger barkeeper smiled kindly as he cleaned a glass with a rag, a fire roaring away in the fireplace. "I'm not quite sure. I bet you'd find him by the beach."

"I already looked there," Saya pouted. "He wasn't there."

"Why do you want to find him anyways?" the barkeeper asked.

A big smile lit up Saya's face, revealing a missing tooth. "Se-cr-et!"

He laughed. "I see. Well, he might be seeing that pretty girl who lives down the street from you," the barkeeper pointed out slyly.

Saya's eyes widened in alarm. "Oh no! He can't be seeing girls! He's seventeen!"

"Now, now, Saya, it's perfectly natural for boys his age to see girls. You should count yourself lucky, usually they start earlier…" He trailed off, realizing she wasn't listening. As a matter of fact, she wasn't even there. She had run out, and the door was still swinging slightly. The bartender chuckled, and continued wiping the glass in his hands.

One of the regulars smiled. "She's really grown up, hasn't she?" he smiled.

The barkeeper nodded agreement.

"NII-SAN!!" Saya bellowed, running up the street. "NII-SAN, WHERE ARE YOU? Ooh, shortcut!" She ducked into one of the alleyways. It was rather dark, and Saya ran faster, nervous.

She had reason to be.

"Well look here!" a voice cackled behind her.

She froze instinctively as five dark shadows loomed all around her. They were _big_. She gulped and raised her small fists. "W-what is it?" she demanded, trying to sound like she wasn't scared at all. "W-what do you guys w-want?"

The one who seemed to be the leader cracked his knuckles in a threatening manner. "Hm… well, your brother gave us some trouble recently. I think if we make an example of his little sister, he won't mess with us anymore."

Now Saya couldn't hide the fact that her knees were shaking. "I… I…"

"Don't worry. We'll make it quick." They started to close in. Saya fell over her own feet trying to escape. They were coming… closer, and closer… She screamed and kicked upwards. It was a kick her brother had taught her, meant for hitting underneath the chin. But being small at age ten, her kick hit one of the gang members somewhere quite different…

The member in question yelled in pain and fell over, twitching, his hands jammed between his legs.

"What's this, boys?" asked a voice from the rooftops. The figure was a dark silhouette against the sun. He wore a baseball cap backwards, a little tuft of brown hair sticking out. Blue eyes surveyed the scene below him like a hawk, tapping a metal pipe across his shoulders. A small silver bell chimed faintly on his belt loop. He sighed theatrically. "Saya, what have you gotten yourself into now?"

Despite her circumstances, Saya couldn't help but to let out a bark of laughter. "Nii-san!"

The gang leader growled. "Adoni."

Adoni grinned and nodded. "Yup, that's me. You rang?"

"You can stay right there," the gang leader growled, roughly grabbing Saya by the scruff of her shirt and flicking open a penknife. Saya froze, not moving a muscle. "You can just watch what I'm going to do to your precious little sister, and learn what happens to people who stand up to the Haghuar Gang!"

"Stay where? Here?" Adoni had suddenly come down from the roof so fast, no one had seen him move. He currently held the gang leader's arm in a death grip. Though he smiled, there was no amusement in his eyes. "Drop her."

The gang leader hesitated. Adoni's eyes flashed dangerously, and his grip tightened. "Now. Before I break your arm."

Grudgingly, he dropped Saya. Saya fell, her knees trembling uncontrollably, but she summoned enough stability to run and cling to her brother's leg.

Adoni bent down and looked at his little sister in the eye. Only a blind person couldn't have seen the family resemblance between them. "Saya, did they hurt you?"

Saya sniffed and wiped her eyes, trying to stop the tears from coming out. "N… no…"

Adoni hugged his little sister. "Thank goodness…"

The gang leader chuckled. "Oh, how touching," he spat disgustedly.

Adoni squeezed Saya before he stood, adjusting his cap. "You bastards had better be prepared for what you've done," he growled.

"Hm? What did we do? The brat's not hurt."

"That's not it." Adoni's grip on the metal pipe tightened. "You've committed two unforgivable acts. One…"

Adoni charged and swung at the gang leader's head with all his strength… which was a lot. "Scum like you dared to touch my precious sister. Second…"

A flurry of kicks, swings, and punches led to all five of them laying on the ground, knocked out and their faces all a different color than they had been about two seconds previously. Adoni stood straight, his eyes blazing. "Don't you bastards take away my sister's smile, ever again."

Saya stared, her eyes wide. "Nii-san…"

Adoni turned with a huge smile. "Now, I've just been down by the bar, and the old man said you wanted to show me something?"

Saya blinked, then a grin almost split her face it two. "Yeah! I finished my firework!"

Adoni got blue lines on his head. "Is it going to misfire like the last one you made?"

"NII-SAN! That's so cruel! I worked so hard on this one!"

The older boy laughed and ruffled Saya's hair. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. But how am I going to see a firework in the middle of the day?"

Saya sweatdropped. "Whoops…"

Adoni took his little sister's hand. "C'mon, let's go for a walk by the beach."

"Okay!"

* * *

Later, Saya and Adoni sat on the beach quietly, listening to the gentle lapping of the waves on the sand. After a while, Saya spoke. "Nii-san?" 

"Mm? What?"

"Are you really dating a girl?"

Adoni grinned. "It's early yet, but I'm hopeful," he said. Seeing her face, he laughed. "Don't look at me like that Saya! When you're like that, I can almost read your mind."

Saya's face fell. "Sorry…" she mumbled.

Adoni blinked. "For what?"

"It's because of me, right?" Saya looked up, her eyes miserable. "The reason you can't live your life the way you want… seeing girls, maybe getting married and having your own family-"

She couldn't continue because Adoni had grabbed her head and pushed her face into the sand. She choked. Adoni let her up, and she spat out grains of sand like little bullets. "What the hell was that for?!"

"Don't be an idiot," Adoni said, his eyes distant as he looked over the sea. "Honestly. If it was choosing between you not existing and me having my dream, what do you think I'd pick?"

"Your dream?"

"_You_, idiot. Because once you're old enough, you can come with me on my dream."

Saya looked up. "Nii-san's dream?"

"Yeah." Adoni looked out over the sea, his mind much farther away than he was. "I'm going to go out to sea and have adventures! This is the Grand Line, after all. Staying on this small island is a waste of all those places to see and people to meet. Once you're old enough, we'll go together."

Saya's eyes sparkled. "So that's why you've been training me!"

"Yep. What better home could we ask for? The sea would be our house, the sky our ceiling, and there'd be nothing to hold us down!"

"Are we going to be pirates?" Saya asked, confused. "Pirates are bad people!"

"We'll be a different kind of pirate," Adoni assured her. "We won't burn villages or steal things other than treasures that we adventured to find. And finding treasures isn't stealing when you think about it."

Reassured, Saya leaned against her brother and snuggled. "Nii-san, I promise I'll train harder and harder. I'll train really, really, really, really, REALLY hard, so I won't get in your way anymore!"

Adoni ruffled her hair fondly. "That's a good girl. Now, let's go to the bar and see if the old geezer's feeling nice today. Maybe he'll let us have some hot chocolate."

"YAY!!" Saya bounced up and started running down the road singing. "Hot hot cho-co-late! Melting marsh-a-mellows and-da cho-co-lat-ey smell! Hot hot hot hot cho-co-late!"

Adoni winced and stood, stretching out the kinks in his back before chasing his little sister. _Man, how can a kid have such a damn good voice?_ he wondered.

Though, admittedly, the lyrics might need a little work.

* * *

Several weeks after that conversation, it happened. 

The fireworks attempt had been a complete fiasco, with Saya deciding that creating fireworks was not for her. Adoni, for one, had been extremely relieved to hear that. He suspected that the rest of the village shared the same feelings.

Adoni had just tucked in Saya for the night. It had been her tenth birthday, and it seemed like the whole village had come to the bar for the celebration. Even those jerks who had threatened Saya had come… and had actually apologized. It had ended with all of them becoming great friends and slightly drunk. Saya was exhausted by midnight and had fallen asleep in her cake. Adoni had taken her home as the party continued, wiping off her face and putting her to bed. She mumbled a little before falling into a deep, deep slumber.

He smiled, seeing his little sister so happy. She had unconsciously wrapped her arms around her favorite, and only, stuffed animal. It was a white bear, with big, black button eyes and a red bowtie. She had dubbed him 'Teddy'. Using his thumb, he wiped off a little drop of frosting that had managed to stay on her face.

That was exactly when the whistle of a cannon and the shock wave of an explosion blew out the glass in the window. Adoni instinctively wrapped his arms around Saya, protecting her from the shards of falling glass. Even before his ears had stopped ringing, he ran to the window…

The bar was on fire. No, not just on fire… it was _gone_. There was like, nothing left of it except some burning timbers. He gaped. Everyone… everyone inside would have…

The blast had come from the harbor. Sticking his head out, he looked in that direction... where the skull and crossbones flew. He choked in anger and rage, darting around the room. Throwing on his cap and combat boots, he grabbed the thing that was brought out only during the most dire situations… a glided pikestaff; his pride and joy, and the thing left to him by his father. He ran around the room, stuffing clothing and traveling food into a pack. They would have to set off on their adventure a little earlier than planned. Saya's socks, where were they…?

"Mm? G'morning Nii-san," Saya yawned, sitting up sleepily. "Wazgoion? (What's going on?)

"Saya, we have to get out of here," Adoni said calmly. "Get into your jacket and put another on top of it, and let's go."

"Hmm?"

Roars filled the air outside. Adoni clenched his fists and mentally swore violently. If they were outside, there would be no way he and Saya could escape… he knelt by the bed and placed a finger on her lips, his face desperate, his mind racing furiously. Her comforter was extremely thick to protect against the chilly winter nights, this plan just might work… "Change in plans. Listen to me. You have to stay under the covers, no matter what."

Saya blinked blearily, still half-asleep. "Huh? First it's 'get up', then it's 'stay in bed'…"

"Just do as I say!" Adoni bit his lip, drinking in every last drop he could of his sister's face. "And promise me, you have to promise no matter what… no matter what you hear or feel, you will _not_ move, and you will _not_ make a single sound, not even a peep. When everything is quiet again, come out, pick up the pack, and go to the other side of the island. My boat will still be there. Use it to leave the island. Understand?"

"Okay…" Saya said uncertainly, still confused.

_She thinks the light from the fire is the sunrise_, Adoni realized suddenly, his heart clenching. "In bed! Now!" He threw the covers on top of her. Obediently, she lay down on her back and stayed still as he smoothed the covers overtop her. Good… it didn't look like there was anyone under there.

What followed was expected. The pirates climbed in through the window, cackling. The captain came in first, followed by his subordinates. Death threats and taunts were exchanged before the fight began: pikestaff vs. a two-handed axe.

Saya wasn't quite following her brother's instructions. For quite some time, she had neglected to mention that there was a hole in the quilting of the comforter. It was quite small, so it didn't let any cold in, but she hadn't mentioned it, not wanting to disturb her brother. She watched, shocked, as they fought. She wanted to scream and cry and kick and punch and kill every one of those horrible people…

The pikestaff went spinning into the air, puncturing the side of the mattress. Adoni fell back, landing on top of the bed, and Saya. The captain cackled. "You've fought well," he said, "but not well enough."

The flash of the downward-chopping axe…

Saya thought she was still dreaming as she watched the scene open-mouthed, her brother's weight crushing her between the sheets. Any second, she would wake up. She would probably be crying, but Adoni would still be there. He would laugh and dry her tears, telling her it was all just a dream…

The horrible sound of a blade cutting through flesh…

Any second now, any second… Adoni might even take her to the bar, and the old geezer would give them a cup of hot chocolate each, maybe…

Reality hit her as the sheets above her became stained some darker color, and the hot liquid running down her face was definitely not hot chocolate. As tears ran down her cheeks, mixing with the blood, she trembled violently, fighting the urge to be sick. She had _promised._

The pirates left to pillage the town. Shaking, Saya crawled out from between the sheets.

Adoni choked, blood running out of a deep gash across his chest. He grinned weakly. "Hey."

Saya threw herself on him, sobbing uncontrollably. He grunted. "Saya… that hurts…"

"Nii-san, I'm sorry! I promised I wouldn't get in your way anymore but because I was here you didn't escape you had to fight because of me and now-"

"Slow down," Adoni smiled. "It's not your fault." He coughed, and more blood flowed out his mouth. He still smiled through. "Saya, I'm the one who should be sorry… looks like you'll need to go adventuring by yourself…"

"Stupid!" Saya yelled. "I don't know how to navigate! But I'll learn! Nii-san, I'll be the cook or the cleaner, I'll improve my singing, I'll train even harder, I'll start making fireworks again-"

"Please don't do _that_…"

Saya sobbed even harder, not hearing him. "I'll even leave Teddy behind if that's what you need… Nii-san, I'll do anything… just please, don't die… please…"

With a great deal of effort, Adoni reached up and ruffled her hair. "You didn't keep your promise yet," he reminded her softly. "The promise isn't done." When Saya looked up, confused, he chuckled a little.

She remembered, but she wasn't ready to act on it. "I'm not leaving you here!" she screamed.

He pushed her feebly, the life starting to ebb from his eyes. "Go. Or else they'll find you too."

"Nii-san!!" Saya seized her brother's shoulders and shook them. "Nii-san! Stay with me here! Hang on, Nii-san! I'll get a doctor, I'll do something!"

But when she ran, stumbling, to the window, half the town was in flames. Breathing hard, she knew there would be no doctor available at this ungodly hour. Climbing back onto the bed, she held her brother's hand, which was strangely cold. "Nii-san…"

Adoni closed his eyes and gently squeezed his sister's hand. Then with a small sigh, his hand fell limp. He was gone.

Saya couldn't quite remember how she had gotten away, but knew that it was only her brother's last wish was what kept her going. He had wanted her to live, so she would. She had taken three things with her: the pack, the bell, and the pikestaff. She also remembered dimly realizing that her pajamas were heavily stained with her brother's blood.

The snow had begun to fall again as her small boat sailed away from the island. Her confused feelings swirled and settled down slowly as she drifted on the ocean: pirates were to blame, this was all _their_ fault. And she would make sure every single one of them paid the price they had made her brother pay, if it was the last thing she ever did.

For eight years afterward, the Coldhearted Lionness was the terror of pirates all over that part of the ocean, her heart freezing a little more with each life she took, until she became almost completely numb to the shock of taking another person's life... and mostly everything else too.

* * *

The Straw Hats were silent after the barkeeper had finished his story. 

Usopp and Chopper were crying. "Saya…"

Nami, Sanji, and Zoro were leaning against the tables, not saying anything.

* * *

Saya opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling a little longer. Well _that_ had certainly been a fiasco, even more so than her fireworks phase.

* * *

Luffy was hiking through the snow-covered forest when he suddenly came across a clearing. Peering out curiously from between the trees, he hemmed and hmmed as he looked over the very official-looking building. 

Suddenly two voices barked from directly behind him, "Halt! What are you doing here? This is World Government property!"

Luffy whirled to see two officials pointing swords at him, seemingly guards of this place. He sweatdropped. "Crap."

**Next: The expected fight begins: Luffy vs. Saya. Add a few hundred World Government officals, tearing hearts, mix in a little closure, and you'll have yourself an interesting chapter to look forward to! (Oh, and we can't forget the little peek at a dark conspiracy either...)**


	5. Destruction

**Author's Note: ELEVEN REVIEWS?! Dear me, I think the world is ending... 'passes out'**

**Saya: 'waves a fan over head' She'll be okay. She did want to tell you all she really appreciates all the feedback, and she's more determined than ever now to make this story worthwhile for all of you! And... 'glances at the agenda notecard and blushes' Er... the pairing is decided!**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: Hm... I put a little hint of the pairing to come in this chapter, near towards the end. CAN YOU FIND IT!?!? MWAHAHAHA!! ...sorry, little sugar high right now. XD**

**Unexpectably insane (anon): YAY!! YOU WEREN'T LATE FOR WORK! Yeah, I had time on Saturday. My dear mother let me have the entire day to write, so it was big happy bubbles and other things that made me stick my head as high as Skypia. Haha!**

**JuniperScaymoore: Phooey, I guess the one time you signed in is going to go down in my personal history book then. Shape, I did that, but I thought it was going a little overboard. Could you predict what Saya's position is going to be?**

**SoDesuKa: Thanks for saying you loved the chapter! I know, Adoni! TT.TT ... I'll say this though, you haven't quite seen the last of the baseball-cap-wearing older brother. That's all I'm saying.**

**Mr. Thumbsup: It's what you've been waiting for in this chapter! Yes, I've got the Brownie meets Saya story planned out. Ranma? I've never heard of it...**

**Rosoku: I was almost crying as I wrote the damn chapter, but this one's definetly happier... :-3 I like apples too! Don't be greedy, gimme! I want some!**

**FeatherGirl13: I'm glad, it sounds like you enjoyed the chapter! I've got my pairing planned, but you'll have to keep your eyes peeled.**

**yuMeNami: Okay, I'll keep writing! I like this story too, it's one of the best ones I've ever written I think.**

**EdwardElricsFan4Ever: Hm... I'll just say that I've already decided the pairing. You'll have to wait to find out who it is, though maybe you can guess. I put about half a hint towards the end if you want to look for it!**

**Dancing Nightmare: O.o Wow, that's a run-on sentence if I ever saw one... I'm not sure I'm going to do more than one pairing, I prefer to focus on my main character, but I'll be sure to keep that in mind!**

**The Faerie of Darkness: It has something of a tune... Half Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and something else I think... The penny? Oh, it appears again in this chapter, only it's a big Luffy penny. XD**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Five: Destruction

Nami looked out the window. "I see. Now it all makes sense," she sighed. "Of course she wouldn't want to come back after something so terrible happening to her here."

Chopper and Usopp were crying floods.

Zoro kept his eyes closed remained silent, thinking hard. If that was really the case, this island would be ruled by pirates, but from the look of things that wasn't the case… He sighed.

Sanji kicked him into the wall. "WAKE UP YOU MORON!!"

Zoro sat up out of the rubble abruptly. "That HURT, dammit! I wasn't sleeping!!"

"What was that sound you were making then, you bastard?"

"That was a sigh, a SIGH, Love Cook!"

"You asking for a fight, you national treasure?! (Note: Marimo are considered treasure of the sea.)

Nami punched them both flying out of the bar. "SHUT UP THE BOTH OF YOU!!" She watched them fly and scowled darkly. "Damn, those guys have no consideration."

Chopper and Usopp waved their hands. "No, they have none at all."

The barkeeper sweatdropped. "Are you guys are going to be able to take good care of her?"

Nami shrugged. "They're a bunch of idiots, but they're dependable when the need comes. And in any case, she's not our nakama yet. Not 'till our captain says so… wherever he is right now…"

Silence…

Usopp, Chopper, and Nami all traded glances, before the penny dropped. A big penny bigger than Luffy after he had eaten a full meal.

"OH SHIT WHERE DID HE GO?!" Usopp screamed.

"He said he was only going out for a walk!" Chopper tried to assure them. "He could be back any second-"

"Are you out of your mind?!" Nami yelled. "This is LUFFY we're talking about. LUFFY."

Chopper sweatdropped. "You have a point…"

Nami grabbed Chopper's antler and Usopp's nose, storming out of the bar. "We have to find him. Or else who knows what he'll be up to!"

"N… Nabi, blez leggo omi noz (Nami, please let go of my nose)," Usopp choked. "I cunt bleath! (I can't breathe!)"

"We have to find Luffy! NOW!"

"Nami, Usopp's dying!"

Usopp's eyes blankened. "Ghopper, lemme lone… ah, but a butiful bield ob bowers… (Chopper, leave me alone… ah, what a beautiful field of flowers…)"

"NAMI, USOPP'S DYING!"

"I DON'T CARE, WE HAVE TO FIND LUFFY! HE'S GOING TO GET US KICKED OUT OF TOWN IF WE DON'T FIND HIM THIS INSTANT!!"

"NAMI, USOPP'S DYING!!!!"

"Goobi wurl, now, den-dousan stong Usobb birade grew, tree teers for de gweat Cabdain Usobb-saba! (Goodbye world, now ten-thousand strong Usopp pirate crew, three cheers for the great Captain Usopp-sama!)"

"_NAMI!!_"

The barkeeper stopped wiping the glass with the rag long enough to stare open mouthed as they ran out and went shouting up the street. He sweatdropped. "Is… Saya really… going to be okay…?" Suddenly he blinked. "Oh shit, I forgot to tell them something really important…"

He looked sadly across the street, where Adoni and Saya's house still stood. It had been empty for all those years… he had made sure no one had touched it. He wasn't exactly sure why, but it felt as long as the house was there, untouched, then Saya might stop killing… Hurting people without a reason had never been her thing.

* * *

Luffy stared at the blades unconcernedly. "Hm? Am I not supposed to be here?" he asked the two guards. 

One of them blinked. "Don't you know? This is a special World Government base headquarters, commanded by Commander Edgar Wandolf."

Luffy tilted his head. "Huh, is that so?"

The other guard also blinked. "Are you new here?"

"Yup! We're visitors!"

"I see, so it's no wonder why you wouldn't know!" they laughed, sheathing their swords.

One of the guards pointed to a path. "Seems you came through the woods… well, if you follow that path, it'll take you straight back to town. Just be sure not to come here again, this is private property, and we won't be able to be so nice next time."

Luffy laughed. "Hey, you guys are nice! Thanks!" He waved, then trotted down the path.

They watched him go, grinning. "He was a nice guy wasn't he?" one said to the other.

His partner nodded. "He is. I sort of hope they don't find him, you know?"

"Yeah…"

What happened by the time they had all gotten back to the ship was this: Nami's punches had knocked Sanji and Zoro halfway back to the cove where Going Merry was hidden. Nami, Usopp, and Chopper had all met up with Luffy as he came down the mountain. Nami had dragged all three of them back to the ship. If a tracker had come after them, they wouldn't have been able to tell what happened… unless the tracks in the snow meant that one teenage girl had been able to drag two guys and a abnormally small reindeer with sufficient strength to make them go flying against stones in the road that had been buried in the snow. The strange foursome would have stopped to look at two prints in the snow resembling two bodies that had fallen from the sky.

So it was in this manner that the crew made their way back to the ship.

Robin waved. "It's good to see you all looking so well," she smiled.

"WHAT?!" The crew was going to yell more, but they fell silent. A door opened, and Saya came out onto the deck, her unsheathed pikestaff in her hands. The silver bell on its base chimed with each step she took.

Brownie perched on the rigging, not making a single sound. He followed Saya with his eyes, pleading, but she ignored them.

Standing on the ship's banister, Saya experienced only a second of hesitation before she jumped. Something of an electric shock traveled up her knees as she hit the ground, almost as if the island was rejecting her presence… or welcoming her back. She couldn't really tell the difference.

* * *

Startled, the bartender looked up. A light in the house across the street had suddenly turned on. He felt shivers run up and down his back. The house didn't have a back door, all the windows were locked, and the only door was the one he could see. Cautiously, he went across the street to check the door. _It was still locked._

He looked up at the faintly lighted window, tears in his eyes. "Adoni… why did you stay here for so long? You shouldn't have…"

A faint chuckle filled the air around the old man. _Not yet…_ it said cheerfully. _I have a few things to take care of first. But thanks for worrying._

The barkeeper bowed his head. "Saya's going to be fine with those people, Adoni. You can trust them."

_I know. I just want to be sure._

"Fool."

* * *

Saya spun her pikestaff in one hand before bringing it to a stop, pointing it at Luffy. Her blue eyes were frozen hard. "Monkey D Luffy. You will fight me, right now." 

Luffy pulled himself out of Nami's grip and stood, brushing himself off. He grinned. "Okay, I will in a minute."

Saya narrowed her eyes.

"Sanji! I'm hungry! Make me something to eat!" Luffy grinned at Saya. "I'll fight you after I've had something to eat," he assured her.

Something flared inside Saya. With no warning, she swung at Luffy, a stroke meant to chop him in half from top to bottom. He jumped out of the way barely in time, and the frozen ground gave away before the pikestaff's edge like butter against a heated knife. Saya glared at him, her eyes no longer frozen, but blazing with fury. "Take me seriously!" she snapped.

Luffy blinked. "I'm always serious!"

Saya spun, holding the pikestaff with both hands near its base. "Akkenai Kire (Long Slice)!" A wave of pure energy sliced through the air. The crew barely ducked underneath it. It flew into the forest, cutting seven trees before disappearing.

Nami looked up, horrified. "What WAS that?!"

Cold blue eyes looked up from between brown bangs. Saya's mouth twisted. "Fight me."

Luffy adjusted his hat and peered at Saya for a little while before he took a stance. "I hope you've prepared yourself."

His only answer was another attack. "Kochou Odori (Butterfly Dance)!" The pikestaff moved so quickly, it didn't seem Saya was controlling it at all. Rather, it seemed to be fluttering of its own accord as Saya did a complex dance, following her blade.

Luffy barely dodged the slices before he quickly retaliated. "Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"

Saya leaned to one side, letting Luffy's fist pass her, before she sliced downwards viciously. It was a slice that would have taken off Luffy's arm, had he not moved his shoulder in time. She leapt forward. "You have to be faster than that!"

They sparred furiously. It was almost impossible to figure out what was happening, but it was clear enough that neither side was gaining an advantage.

Saya suddenly slipped past Luffy's guard and sliced towards his chest. He stumbled back, not quite having recovered his balance after his last attack, knowing it was going straight for his heart. _Damn!_

The blade stopped mere inches from his vest.

Saya's eyes were hidden. Luffy blinked in surprise before he punched. Saya dropped, ducking the attack. She chopped down towards his head, but her pikestaff suddenly stopped just short of it, again.

Suddenly, the battle came to a halt, Saya frozen in the 'kill' position. Luffy easily clapped it between his hands. He couldn't quite see Saya's eyes, but he could sense something was wrong. He narrowed his eyes. "Why're you going easy on me?"

"Shut up and stand there a minute. You'll be dead in a second." Saya's hands were shaking. Why couldn't she finish the stroke?!

Yanking the pikestaff out of her hands, Luffy threw it behind him. It landed blade-first into the snow. Saya fell to her knees, her hands clenched into tight fists on her knees. He narrowed his eyes. "Saya… my nakama are supposed to be happy."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Saya spat bitterly. "Hurry up and kill me. This was a fight to the death, remember?"

Luffy adjusted his hat. "I want my nakama to be able to laugh, all the time. But as you are now, you'll never laugh."

Saya's breath caught in her throat. She couldn't breathe. Luffy's expression changed to anger. He brought a fist back and punched her cheek with everything he had. "You think killing everyone's going to solve your problems?!"

Saya flew backwards before she hit the ground. She sat up shakily. Something was happening, and it wasn't just her getting beaten up… even though she was getting beaten, she was suddenly feeling… lighter…

Luffy didn't let her get back up, punching her again. "If you're going to be destroyed by being beaten on your homeland, then I'm going to do it!" Saya flew into a tree, but Luffy wasn't done. He leapt after her and punched her straight through the tree, which gave away with a groan and flying splinters. "I'm going to destroy her, the stupid you that's destroying the happy you by killing people! I don't want that person as my nakama!"

There was a deathly silence. Everyone waited for a moment, before Zoro suddenly grinned. "That idiot…"

"Saya or Luffy?" Nami asked him with a wry smile.

"Doesn't matter."

Luffy looked down at her, breathing hard, before he took a deep breath. "Well?" he asked quietly.

Saya lay down on the snow, hardly breathing. That feeling… the lightness… Was it possible to feel lighter than air when her body felt like lead? It was spreading slowly from her chest, all the way to the tips of her fingers. Her heart was pounding in her ears.

A faint bark of laughter. Saya's eyes snapped open and she gasped. For an instant, she could have sworn… no, it was gone. She sat up slowly. She looked at the Going Merry, where Robin and Brownie were watching, then to the beach, where the rest of the crew was watching her. They were all smiling at her.

Something seemed to explode inside Saya. She felt hot tears growing in her eyes… that was insane. She hadn't cried since… but here were the tears now. They chased one another down her cheeks, and it was extremely difficult to breathe. She fell to her knees, and the tears melted little holes in the snow. Biting her lip to refrain from making any noise, she nodded. Just once.

That was all the Straw Hats needed. Saya looked up to see them hooting, yelling, laughing, slapping each other on the back, celebrating…

Usopp grinned and punched the air. "I think this calls for a kampai!" he roared.

"YEAH!"

Sanji jumped onto the ship, and came back almost as quickly with a huge barrel of ale. Robin sprouted hands that brought out eight cups, throwing them to each of the crew. A chain of hands came down the ship and gently handed (no pun intended) the cup to Saya. Then Sanji and Robin jumped off the ship as Brownie fluttered down on Saya's head, and the whole crew gathered around Saya.

Saya stared for a moment. As if there wasn't enough happening to her body already, something was clawing at her throat, trying to get out. She couldn't quite tell what it was. _Nii-san…_

Luffy thrust his brimming cup into the air. "ALRIGHT! EVERYONE, KAMPAI FOR OUR NEW NAKAMA, SAYA!"

"_**KAMPAI!**_" they roared together.

And as with any kampai that the Straw Hats celebrated, it looked like it was going to turn into an all-night party. Piling onto the deck, dragging Saya after them, the party began. Sanji whipped up an impossibly enormous amount of food; Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper found the nose-chopsticks; Zoro took control of the ale barrel; Nami was screaming for everyone to calm down; and Robin watched it all and laughed.

Saya stared in astonishment as Luffy started a meat-eating contest, himself being the only participant, and Zoro finished off the whole barrel without seeming to get drunk at all. Usopp and Chopper were singing some song that was impossible to comprehend due to the chopsticks in their noses. Nami had given up trying to control them and was now partying as hard as any of them. Sanji came out, and he and Zoro immediately got into a fight about who-knows-what. Usopp and Chopper were trying to get Brownie to put on a little Santa Claus hat and trying to get the poor little bird to drink.

Brownie flew behind Saya for protection, then going too fast to stop, Usopp and Chopper crashed into her, the result being them rolling all over the deck before coming to a halt. There was a frozen moment. Usopp turned blue. "Damn it…"

That was when Saya lost the battle for control of her throat. She laughed. She laughed as the tears ran down her cheeks, finally realizing that after eight years of hell, she had found a place she belonged, a place where she could laugh and rest and… maybe even be happy.

_Nii-san, this is fine, right? Being able to laugh again feels… _

When Chopper and Usopp realized she wasn't going to kill them, they started laughing along. Then the rest of the crew joined in before the party started to move again in full swing.

Saya had seemed to be suddenly transformed, laughing and joking, making fun of everyone and joining Usopp and Luffy in annoying Zoro and Sanji. She snuck a cooked slab of meat right off the pan while Sanji wasn't looking, promptly burning her fingers. She found out that it was lots of fun to play 'Poke the Bunny' with Zoro acting as the bunny, to his ultimate discomfort. (_For those of you that don't know the game, just ask me about it._) She even stole a tangerine, though Nami caught her as she was halfway through splitting it with the rest of the crew.

Nami sweatdropped as she had pounded the tangerine-eating-culprits thoroughly and muttered, "Is the really the same person?"

Robin smiled. "I don't believe so, Kokaishi-san. I think she's become a better one."

It was undoubtedly the best night in Saya's life.

* * *

"_Pirates have docked in the cove?"_

"_Yes, that is correct, Commander Wandolf. We believe it is the Straw Hat pirates, and they currently have Hanabi Saya with them."_

"_The Coldhearted Lioness… this could be interesting. Give her an… invitation, to come and speak with me."_

"_Yes, sir."_

**Next: Saya gathers herself up and goes to visit the old town... but after she doesn't come back the next morning, everyone can sense something's gone wrong... very wrong.**


	6. Going Back

**Author's Note: Okay, sorry for the wait! I finally got enough time to write up this chapter, but it might be another long while before the next one... I am trying though, I promise! For everyone who's asked, poke the bunny is where there is a little cute bunny just sitting there innocently. It's not doing anything, and you click on this glove to poke it. Go play it! You know you want to! under micellaneous (sp?).**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Yes, I'm glad Saya's back too. I missed her hyper personality. She's evil in this chapter though!! XD In the good sense, anyhow. As always...**

**The Faerie of Darkness: The big penny. I missed that penny! It's going to come up at least once in every story that I write, I'm pretty sure. Just for you! XD Pennies are awesome, and ghosts are too! Especially if they're as nice as Adoni.**

**unexpectably insane (anon): Well, yes it is sort of the old personality. She was much more hyper and happy in my other story, and that's the way she's going to stay for this story... I hope... It'll depend on how things turn out.**

**Mewgirl35: I'm glad the chapter made you smile! I love it when Luffy does things like that, I'm such a sucker for touching moments... I get all teary eyed and stuff... XD**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: Yes, you've guessed the pairing correctly! I'm hoping you're not too disappointed, but I'm going to make it come out the best I can, I promise!**

**JuniperScaymoore: I have absolutely no idea what that means except it involves Madagascar somehow. Penguins are cool, I guess... And you signed in! **

**Digimonfan (anon): Thanks, it's good to hear I'm doing well!**

**SoDesuKa: Thanks! I wasn't exactly sure how that was going to turn out, I hope I'm keeping everyone in character enough... Adoni's there, and he's sort of not there... I have plans for the man though, just you wait. **

**yuMeNami: I put a description of Poke the Bunny in my Author's Note.**

**Rosoku: Apples! I love apples! ...fruit in general, really... XD I really appreicate you taking the time to tell me that! I'm really, really, really happy that you find my story worth reading and waiting for, that sort of thing means a lot to me!**

**Seven O'Clock Dinner: Thank you so much! I'm so happy to know that people enjoy this story!**

**Zinfer: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Six: Going Back

"Come with us!"

"NO."

"Come with us!"

"I refuse!"

"You only have to come for a few minutes! Just c-" A snowball hit Luffy square in the mouth as he was about to say more. Saya's temper might not be good, but that didn't mean that she didn't have good aim.

"What part of 'no' do you not understand? I'm not going!"

Needless to say, Luffy was preparing to go into town again with Nami, Robin, Usopp, Zoro, Sanji… Chopper, after some persuading, had agreed to stay by himself to guard the ship. And in his mind, Saya was going to go as well. Unfortunately, his mind was not Saya's mind.

Saya was sitting cross-legged in the snow on the shore, resolutely refusing to move. It was a miracle that they had got her off the ship in the first place, Zoro thought wryly from the banister. She had a couple bandages on her face from the fight a couple days ago, expertly applied by the little reindeer. Thinking about how they had gotten her off the ship… Zoro stifled laughter, but in truth, he'd rather not think about it.

Hint for those who might want to know how they did it: ero-cook power, Robin's hands, Chopper screaming, a big slab of meat, a wet cleaning rag, Brownie nearly getting squashed, and a big, resultant slash in the deck from Saya's pikestaff. Now you decide how it happened.

Luffy pouted. "You've got to come!"

"I don't wanna!"

"C'mon! We're going to see the barkeeper Ossan again, come with us!"

Saya blinked. "Barkeeper…" She scowled. "Damn it, that old geezer's still alive?"

Nami grinned. "Yeah. Come on, it won't be so bad!"

Saya faltered before she set her jaw stubbornly. "I refuse," she said defiantly, crossing her arms.

"Is that so?"

Frantic cheeping made Saya look around. Zoro was grinning at her, Brownie held in one hand. Brownie was struggling and crying, clearly showing that he was not voluntarily being held. His grin broadened in amusement as he saw Saya's mouth fall open. "Well? Don't you care about this bird of yours?"

"That's so dirty!" Saya accused, pointing a finger directly at him.

He just chuckled, seeing the stunned looks on everyone else's faces. Robin was just smiling. "Oh my," she said.

Saya whirled, but there was no help coming from the other members of the crew. They were all grinning evilly at her and she twitched. "You… were all in on this…"

Evil chuckles.

Saya gave them a death glare before she stood, brushing herself off and giving a sigh of resignation. "Guess I've got no choice…" She stood and looked at the ground, her eyes shadowed.

Nami blinked. "What's she doing?"

Usopp suddenly shivered. "I've got a bad feeling about this…"

Saya looked at the sky, the winter sun reflecting in her eyes. "Sanji-kuuuun…" she moaned.

"YES, MELLORINE!?" Sanji spun on his little tornado of hearts before falling to one knee and taking Saya's hand. "What may I do for you, my delicate porcelain doll?"

Everyone's jaws dropped straight to the ground. Literally.

"She really IS a demon!" Usopp choked.

Chopper hurriedly hid behind the mast, even if it was on the wrong side.

It was an almost comical really, considering that even though Sanji was kneeling, Saya was still only about a head taller than him.

Saya sniffed theatrically, hiding her face in her free hand. "Zoro is… Zoro is…"

Sanji stood, shaking his fist at the stunned Zoro threateningly. "Oi Marimo! If you've done anything to Saya-chan…"

"Save the jokes for that coil of mosquito repellent you've got for an eyebrow, you idiot!" Zoro retorted. "It was the bird's idea."

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Sanji roared. He leapt up onto the deck. "Who you calling an idiot?!"

"I forget."

"Don't give me crap like that!" Sanji yelled, kicking towards Zoro's head. Zoro blocked, then they started fighting like crazy… as usual. It was insane.

And in that time, Saya snatched Brownie back and looked the little bird in the eye. "Was it really your idea to be held hostage?" she asked, a dangerous undercurrent in her voice.

Brownie started crying, but he nodded.

Saya suddenly smiled and nodded in understanding. "Oh, I see! It was your idea after all!"

Brownie was, understandably, suspicious of such a sudden change in heart. He kept crying, waiting for the bomb to fall…

Saya suddenly sighed in resignation. "If you wanted me to go so badly, why not just say so?" she demanded.

The whole crew snapped their hands forward. "That's what we've BEEN telling you!!"

Saya took a deep breath and braced herself. "Okay… I'll go."

Brownie cheeped happily and fluttered to her shoulder as the rest of the crew sweatdropped.

"What… exactly happened?" Nami asked.

"Dunno…" Luffy and Usopp muttered.

Robin chuckled. Zoro and Sanji were still fighting like hell.

* * *

Somehow, they all got to town. Somehow they actually made it, after getting Zoro and Sanji to stop fighting… which basically consisted of Nami going on board and knocking the daylights out of the both of them. Then they set off, Chopper waving goodbye and yelling at them all to be careful. 

Despite her new, lighthearted manner (which everyone liked much better), anyone with half an eye could see that Saya was getting more tense the closer they drew to the village.

Zoro drew her aside for a second. "You don't have to do this you know," he told her.

Saya looked reprovingly at him, then broke down with a wry grin. "That's a lie and you know it." She took a deep, shuddering breath. "If I don't, I'm going to regret it the rest of my life."

Zoro grinned. "As long as you're sure."

"I am."

"We're here!" Nami called.

For the first time in eight years, Saya was looking at her hometown. She stared in astonishment. Nothing was as she remembered it. It was all new… well, that was to be expected. If the original inhabitants of the town had all died, then the newcomers wouldn't have known what the old town looked like.

Understanding, the crew left her alone. She entered the town in somewhat of a daze, but with only one destination in mind.

* * *

The barkeeper didn't look up at the sound of the doors swinging open. They usually did, about this time of day. Getting close to noon, people were getting hungry. "Welcome!" he called absentmindedly. The light in the house across the street hadn't gone out, but it had faded to a glimmer, only visible if you knew to look for it. 

"You haven't died yet, you old geezer?" was Saya's opening line. "Geez, you're living way past your time. Are you planning to live forever?"

The barkeeper froze, before slowly turning around. Saya smiled, a little sadly. "Good to see you again, old man."

He gaped. "S… Saya… you… you HOTHEADED BRAT!"

Saya slammed the flat of her pikestaff on the barkeeper's head furiously. "IS THAT ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY AFTER I THINK EVERYONE WAS DEAD FOR EIGHT YEARS AND COME BACK TO FIND AT LEAST _YOU_ WERE ALIVE, YOU SHITTY OLD MAN?!"

The barkeeper clutched his head before he grinned. "Saya, you little demon... You haven't changed a bit."

Saya instantly sobered. "I did change," she said slowly. "Both ways though, so maybe it's like a double negative thing."

The old man smashed a wine bottle on her head. "Stupid kid," he growled. "You know I hate math."

Saya twitched as the liquid ran down her hair, soaking her clothes. A ginormous bump similar to the one on the barkeeper's head was raising on her own. She sighed. "Gee, thanks… I'll die if someone comes at me with a lighted match now, shitty old man."

"Well, maybe you're not the same after all," the barkeeper agreed. "You've got a foul mouth now."

"I hate you."

"I missed you too."

* * *

Sometime much later, towards evening, the Straw Hats stopped by the bar to check on Saya. Peeking through the window, they saw her laughing and talking, sharing a drink with the barkeeper as they revisited old memories and laughed. To Saya's surprise, she was able to think about Adoni without the sharp stab of regret slicing her heart. She was able to think about her brother with tenderness instead of pain now. It was strange, she had spent so much of her life trying _not_ to think about him. Maybe it was because she had learned to let go, just a little. In the warmth of her new friendships, some of the unpleasant things had melted… 

The Straw Hats grinned at each other before heading back to the ship. Saya would come back when she was ready.

Nami laughed as they neared the ship. "It's good to see Saya so happy for once," she said. "She was such a pain in the ass for such a long time…"

"I guess she did have her reasons though," Zoro mused. "I mean, we've heard all the stuff that's happened to her..."

Nami's eyes widened, then she pounced. "Zoro! Now why would you take an interest in a person who's just joined our crew?"

Zoro ignored the hint and shrugged. "Because she's a part of our crew?" he suggested.

Nami's evil grin widened and she slapped him on the back. "Oh come on Zoro, if you take away her height, she's rather pretty isn't she?"

"Wouldn't taking away her height make her even more shorter than she actually is?"

For someone who didn't have much social sense, Zoro was avoiding these questions rather expertly… or it could've been he didn't even pick up on what was going on. Probably the latter.

Usopp understood though. He elbowed Zoro companionably and grinned. "Hey, hey, don't act stupid!"

Zoro stiffened. "Get away from me," he growled, shoving Usopp into Luffy.

Unfortunately, there was someone else who understood the signals that were being given off. "Oi, Marimo."

"What is it, shitty cook?"

Sanji relit his cigarette. "If you even think about laying a hand on my precious little doll, you're going to pay dearly."

"What the hell are you talking about, you Love Cook?!"

Sanji scowled. "You know exactly what I'm talking about, you Moss-Head!"

"Are you on crack?"

"You looking for a fight?!"

Er… maybe it would be better not to go into details about what happened next.

* * *

The barkeeper took a sip of his drink before smiling. "So? How long are you going to stay in town?" 

Saya leaned her chair back on its rear legs, looking up at the ceiling and sighing. "I don't know… It depends. The Log sets in about two weeks for this island, right?"

"Something like that. Sixteen days, I'm pretty sure."

"So we've been here for about a week already… About another week or so then," Saya smiled. "They told me now that I'm going to be their nakama from now on… so…"

"Sounds like you'll be leaving pretty soon then," the barkeeper said, a little wistfully.

Saya waved her hands. "It's not like that! I mean, I guess it was good to come back here and all, but I really want to go with these guys, and they don't stop or hesitate. And-"

The barkeeper smiled tenderly, interrupting Saya. "I'm really glad you've found people who you care about."

"You want to know something?" Saya closed her eyes as an expression of pure bliss passed over her face. "I guess it's nice to have nakama."

"What are they setting out to do? That Luffy wants to be the Pirate King, right?"

"They've all got different goals…" Saya suddenly let out a bark of laughter. "Traveling the Grand Line, never knowing what's ahead, acting like a lot of idiots, random partying, monsters and things… Damn, it's going to be one hell of an adventure."

She grinned as the barkeeper roared with laughter. "It looks as though you'll have a good time though," he chuckled when he had calmed down enough to speak.

"Doesn't it?" Saya's grin broadened even more. "If it means I can do all of that with these guys, I can't wait! I'm really looking forward to sailing with them. Maybe I can even accomplish my dream too..."

"A week's rather long when you're that fired up," the barkeeper smiled.

"Damn right it is." She took another sip before she waved her hand. "So tell me, what's been going on? Lots can happen in eight years."

The barkeeper's face suddenly fell. He hadn't wanted to say, because this was the part that he knew would hurt her the most. He filled up her glass to the brim. When she looked at him questioningly, he sighed. "Drink that all up before I tell you."

"That bad?" Saya asked quietly, not touching the glass. "What's happened?"

"Saya, this island has been-"

Suddenly, three men barged into the bar. The barkeeper scowled. "Hey, can't you lunkheads read the 'we're closed' sign?"

"We're here on strict World Government business," one of the men snapped. "Is Hanabi Saya here?"

"What's it to you if I am?" Saya growled. "I was having a nice drink, and then you had to come and ruin it."

"We're here to offer you a deal," the soldier said. "It's a very interesting one, and I think it will be in your best interest to hear it."

"Not interested."

A crafty smile passed the soldier's face. "You'll want to hear it. I believe it involves your shipmates."

Saya's heart stopped for a second. She scowled darkly, her face suddenly becoming a thundercloud. "What about them?"

"Let me rephrase. It would be in _their_ best interest if you come with us and hear our proposal."

**Next: Saya's sudden disappearance is not gone unnoticed by the Straw Hat pirates, who have gone into a frenzy looking for her. But something's going on in the mansion at the top of the mountain, something bad. REALLY bad.**


	7. The Bad Guy

**Author's Note: OMG IT SNOWED!! IT'S SNOWED, IT'S SNOWING, AND IT BETTER CONTINUE TO SNOW UNTIL I TELL IT TO STOP!! (Which will be never so I don't have to go to school tomorrow! Haha!!) Well, I was in such a good mood that I came home and wrote this chapter! XD If it's a little rushed, sorry... wrote it in like a hour, which is like half the time I ususally spend.**

**The Faerie of Darkness: 'rolls eyes' Do Sanji and Zoro do anything BUT fight each other? (When they're not doing their other respective stuffs, I mean...) **

**SoDesuKa: Yup, things are 'moving'. It's going to get intense from here on out, you have my word for that. I'm glad you approve of the pairing, I personally think it's going to turn out the be quite hilarious. XD**

**animelover333: Thanks for the compliments! They made me feel really happy! I'm glad you like the pairing. **

**luckyblackcat13: Awesome! PM me when you write something and I promise I'll look at it! Hurry, I'll look forward to it!**

**yuMeNami: Okay, here's some more for ya!**

**Rosoku: Ahahahaha... the Sanji thing actually wasn't planned in advance by me, it was a spur of the moment thing... 'laughs nervously' Some of that suspense is resolved in this chapter, or I hope it is anyways. It's supposed to do the opposite...**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Er, sorry, I haven't gotten a chance to start reading it yet. I've asked about it and got really good reviews on it from my friends, so I want to start it as soon as possible! Maybe this weekend, I'll have some time...**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: Aww... I can relate, except for the 'single' part... I've never had a boyfriend ever, and I'm almost fifteen. I hope you get better soon! Being sick is never any fun... though the last time I was personally sick was when I was like... seven...**

**unexpectably insane (anon): Heh, this chapter moves pretty quickly for my taste... but I'm trying to do it sort of in the form of acutal One Piece. There'll be a string of a few eps where they're just goofing off on an island then BAM the bad thing happens. Hope it doesn't bother you too much!**

**Juniper Scaymoore: Hey, who says a bit of random partying isn't good now and then? I want to party with the Straw Hats sometime!! I think it would be so awesome! Cream pies to throw for everyone!!**

**And-You-Thought-I-Cared: 'hides' I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!! I want to update it and I will! I promise!! TToTT Don't kill me!! Well One Piece is like on my top five faves anime list... Robin is the lady with the sort of cowboy hat (at the part you're watching, I think), black hair, etc... I'm going to change Saya's history for every story I write pretty much, just to fit her in with the characters better. 'hides' Please don't kill me!!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Seven: The Bad Guy

Saya was led to the mansion at the top of the hill. Walking in, stony-faced, she was brought before Commander Edgar Wandolf, a lean man who obviously trained hard in the highest of luxury. A three pointed hat sat at an angle on his head, the type of person who thinks he's a ladies' charmer but really isn't. His harem, sort of, was sitting around him on soft cushions and stroking him, crooning. You could tell they were faking… or they actually meant it and gave off the stupidest signals. He practically purred in delight before he turned his attention to Saya. The leer he gave her was supposed to be a smile. "Hanabi Saya."

Saya considered several opening lines before she decided on this: "Who the hell are you?" she snapped.

The ladies screeched. "You bitch! How dare you be so rude to Wandolf-sama!"

Well… there was more than one way of getting to the point. Saya's ears hurt from the screeching and she could feel a headache coming on. Her face hardened a little more. "Actually, I don't give a shit who you are. What the hell are you planning to do to my nakama?"

The ladies screeched again, but it didn't last as long before Wandolf himself burst into too-loud, phoney fakeish laughter. "You amuse me!" he boomed. "Not many would dare to be so bold with me!"

"As if I give a damn. Tell me what you're planning to do."

Wandolf's leer turned crafty. "Saya-"

"Don't say my name without a valid reason," Saya barked harshly.

"Very well, _Miss_. I have a request to make of you."

"And if I refuse?"

Wandolf roared with laughter. "You're a funny one! I haven't even offered it yet. Very well, here is what I wish for you to do. You will stay here with me, on this island. I will give you certain duties…"

Saya listened in growing horror as he continued to speak, before her face twisted. "I refuse," she hissed viciously. "I will not become some pet Lioness to be used, then thrown aside." Disconnected images of the last few weeks with the Straw Hats flitted through her mind like little golden butterflies, and her face set determinedly. They had taught her how to laugh again, they would never throw her aside when she had fulfilled her worth… and there wasn't anything else she wanted more to do than to keep sailing with them. "I have better things to do."

Wandolf shrugged. "Very well. But you should know that we have four cannons here. All of them, at the moment, are pointed towards a certain cove about a mile down the coastline from the town. Lioness you may be, but realize that from the moment you entered this building, you were already in my cage."

Saya's face didn't change at all, but Wandolf noted with some satisfaction that she had visibly paled. She could almost hear the door slamming behind her, locking her in. All that was left was to turn the key, and ironically enough, she would be the one who would have to do it.

Wandolf gave an amused chuckle and checked a bronze pocketwatch. "I have given my men the order to mobilize the cannons. They will be fired with perfect accuracy in about… three minutes, unless I give word otherwise. Are you listening now?"

* * *

The barkeeper held his head in his hands, elbows on the table, in the quiet picture of despair. He was the one who should have told Saya, she would take it better from a friend, why had he been so stupid and waited so long?! Whatever it was she wouldn't know right away. They'd make her do something horrible, then tell her and laugh at her pain. He had no doubt about that. That was the sort of person Wandolf was. After using her until there was almost nothing left, he would tell her. 

There was so much time in which he could have told her, now she would have to find out from the lips of an enemy. It was all of his fault that her smile would vanish again, it could even be gone for good and not even those people would be able to bring it back…

He took a deep, shuddering breath. His shoulders shook gently, and twin trails of wetness leaked out from between his fingers. "Saya… I'm sorry…"

* * *

Sweat beaded on Saya's face. She couldn't do this, she couldn't… she would be used and then thrown away like an old piece of trash if she agreed. This was going to be humiliating, loosing her pride and her freedom in an unspeakably horribly way… She felt the sea calling her and she ached. If she refused, she could still go and be free on the boundless sea which belonged to no one... 

But if she didn't… all of them down at the ship… they wouldn't be able to see the cannonballs coming because the cove would encircle them. They would only be able to see the open sea, not what came from behind to destroy them… Maybe now they would be all sleeping, dreaming about their dreams and goals… With a jolt, she remembered it was Zoro on watch tonight again… despite the circumstances, she almost laughed. He would probably be asleep too. Zoro…

"Two minutes."

No… Saya bit her lip so hard it bled, flooding her mouth with a sour, coppery taste. She couldn't just leave them to die. She couldn't. She would have to do this. This would be just another tie she would just have to server. The words rose in her throat, but her mouth had locked itself shut. Apparently her body wasn't agreeing with her mind. Secretly, she agreed with it. Severing this particular tie wasn't going to be as easy, to put it mildly. There was nothing more than she had wanted to do in her entire life than to stay with these people. She would give up even her own dream to sail with them, her friends, her family, her _nakama…_

"One minute."

A bead of sweat ran down her cheek. Saya swallowed hard, trying to unlock her throat. One word. That's all it would take. One word, and that would be that. She would belong to this egocentric man for life, at the very least. Her mouth was paper dry. It was as if her body was doing everything it could to make this impossible for her.

_Impossible? There was no such thing as impossible._

"Forty-five seconds."

It came out in a whisper at first. "Fine."

Wandolf looked up, an amused expression on his face. "Hm? What was that? I couldn't quite hear you. Thirty seconds left to go, by the way."

Bastard, Saya thought viciously. He's doing this on purpose. "I said, 'fine'. I'll do it. I'll be your damn little puppet mercenary and toy pet, so call of the attack."

Wandolf smiled. "I thought you would see it my way," he approved. "You're an intelligent one. We may be able to get along very well." He spoke briefly into a Den Den Mushi on his wrist before smiling at her, stretching out his arm. "Now, come to me. It would be more comfortable on these cushions for you, by me."

Wanting to vomit in disgust, Saya grudgingly sat down stiffly as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, stroking her hair as the other women sent death glares in her direction. She set her teeth and endured it. They could resume the attack at any minute if she didn't do this. She felt heat building in her eyes, but roughly pushed it down into the black hole in her heart. She would not cry, not here. They were safe, and would stay safe as long as she could control herself.

* * *

The darkness of the night was made even darker as a cloud passed over the crescent moon. The barkeeper still wasn't looking anywhere besides the inside of his eyelids as the regret and pain and sorrow burned and burned. 

If he had looked up at that moment, he might have seen the light in the house across the street slowly brightening, before it flared impossibly brightly, as if in rage. Adoni moved wildly, thrashing against the walls, but it was too late. The first orange streaks of sunrise were touching the sky and imprisoning him in this house. Adoni inwardly raged in frustration, but didn't yell. That would have raised too many questions for the bartender, who had worked so hard to make the new townspeople leave this house standing. Trying to calm down, he sat sullenly on the bed to wait for when the sun set again, attempting to come up with a plan.

Something had happened. He didn't have a single clue as to what it was, but something was ripping Saya inside out... again. And just after she had become so happy too! He couldn't leave her like this. He couldn't, he had promised to take care of her. But he was a damn _ghost_, the only power he had was appearing to only the people he chose, being invisible to everyone else. He didn't have anything to arm himself with either, not that it would have done him much good. He wouldn't have been able to pick it up, much less throw a punch.

As much as he hated it, he was totally helpless to save his little sister from whatever it was. At least he should be able to do _something_. Saya hadn't left the island this time, so he felt he had to do something to help. He couldn't leave the island in his current state (ghost), so he couldn't help her then, only feel her pain as she forced herself to become a killer. He ground his insubstantial teeth in frustration. But now she was here, on Daizuke, and he still couldn't do anything!!

Wait...

Those people, the ones Saya had wanted to go with. Maybe it was a good time to test their loyalty to the people they called their nakama.

* * *

Much later, back at the Going Merry, Zoro was trying to take a nap, but he wasn't having much success. It was almost evening again. Saya hadn't returned. He was a little irritated, wondering what the hell she and that old geezer could talk so long about. He could understand her spending the night in town if it had gotten that late, but she might have at least come back by now to let them know what she was planning to do. 

Sanji was cooking up a storm in the kitchen, judging from the sound of chopping knives and flames roaring in the stove. Absentmindly, he made enough servings for eight people.

Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper were all fishing. For once, they were being extremely successful, judging by the cooler filled almost to the brim with flopping fish. They were joking and laughing about their successes until Luffy reeled in one that was too big to fit into the cooler. He tried to stuff it in anyways, resulting in the cooler being knocked over and all their fish (except for six) escaping by flopping through the banister.

Robin was reading a book, as usual. She smiled as she listened to Usopp and Chopper yell at Luffy for loosing their catch.

Nami was reviewing some maps that she had 'borrowed' from town, looking at the currents surrounding the islands and plotting their best course. Something was bothering her about the direction they would have to go after the Log set… it was extremely shallow and rocky, they'd have to be careful…

"Nami-san, Robin-chan, Saya-chan!" Sanji sang, kicking open the kitchen door as he continued to cook. "Your dinners are ready!"

"Ooh, food!" Luffy laughed, running into the kitchen. He was just as quickly kicked out, heading face-first into the mast. "Sanji… why…?"

When Nami and Robin walked into the kitchen, Sanji blinked. "Saya-chan's not back yet?"

Nami shrugged in answer. "She's probably catching up with the bartender. They have eight years worth to talk about, after all."

Sanji smiled. "You're probably right, Nami-san." He elegantly set a plate before both of them. "Now, please enjoy my Dinner of Undying Love."

Robin chuckled. "Thank you, Cook-san."

Sanji stuck his head out the kitchen door. "Oi, all you other bastards! Come and get your food!"

"FOOD!" Luffy, completely oblivious to the bump on his head, dashed into the kitchen and banged his palms on the table. "Sanji! Food, food, food!!"

"It's coming, it's coming!"

Usopp and Chopper filed in. Zoro cast a last glance at the path leading from town, the bruise he had gotten from Saya playing 'Poke the Bunny' with him throbbing slightly…

"Hey Marimo, you'd better hurry up, your food's disappearing," Sanji called.

With a burst of alarm, Zoro dashed into the kitchen as the sun set into the sea behind him. "LUFFY! Keep your paws off my food!"

"I basn boin andytin! (I wasn't doing anything!)" Luffy said innocently, his face stuffed with food.

Nami suddenly shivered and rubbed her arms briskly. It suddenly felt a little cold… Looking up, she stared, slack-jawed.

Adoni looked pointedly back, floating in midair and sitting in a cross-legged position. A light pulsed steadily inside his chest, though an ugly wound was still faintly visable. Through him, the kitchen wall was slightly visible as his slightly blue eyes scanned the people arrayed before him. He adjusted his baseball cap before he waved with a cheery grin. _Yo._

Nami screamed. In turn, she set off Usopp and Chopper screaming and running in circles around the kitchen. Zoro choked on his food, Sanji dropped the used plates he was holding. Luffy got stars in his eyes.

Robin was, as ever, unfazed. "We seem to have an unexpected visitor," she commented.

Adoni tilted his head, a wry smile on his face. _No manners whatsoever,_ he commented dryly. _I haven't even introduced myself and you all are already making this much noise._

Zoro stopped choking long enough to actually take a look at their 'visitor'. He blinked. There was something vaguely familiar about him…

Usopp had stopped running and was just staring open-mouthed. "A g…g-g-gho…g-g-g-gh-gh-gho-"

"A GHOST!!!" Chopper screamed.

Nami screamed even louder. "I DON'T WANT TO DIE YET!!"

Luffy took the liberty of walking up to Adoni and trying to poke him. His hand went right through.

Adoni winced. _Could you please not do that?_ he asked. _It's uncomfortable._

Luffy, of course, paid no heed. "Look everyone! My arm goes right through him!!" he said in delight, waving his hand through Adoni's arm.

_I would imagine it would_, Adoni said dryly, floating out of Luffy's arm reach. He stood himself on the floor next to Nami, who all but fainted. _I am, after all, dead._

Sanji stared, twitching. "A… ghost… it's a ghost… a GHOST!!!"

Robin eventually got things settled down (basically meaning hands blooming everywhere and shutting everyone up). She smiled, taking a sip of her coffee. "Now, Ghost-san, would you mind telling us your reason for being here?" she asked.

Adoni moved again. Luffy had moved around the table and was trying to touch him again. This resulted in him sort of moving in circles around the table as he spoke, Luffy chasing him with stars twinkling around his eyes. _I believe you are familiar with my little sister? I'm sorry if she's a burden sometimes, but she has a good heart._

Nami had recovered enough to speak properly. She blinked. "Little sister… you mean Saya?"

Adoni grinned. _Yes. I am Hanabi Adoni. It's a pleasure to meet you all._

Luffy's jaw fell open. "What? Saya had an older brother?"

_Yes._

"And you're him?"

_Yes._

"You died?"

_Apparently so_, Adoni said dryly.

Luffy was stunned into silence for a moment, before he got sparkles around his eyes again. "That means you're a ghost!!"

Everyone took a moment to slap or kick or punch their dimwitted captain. "NOTICE THESE THINGS!!"

Adoni sighed. These people were quite a lively bunch… no wonder Saya had taken to them. _Who's he?_ he asked.

Nami sighed. "It's a pain to say it, but he's our captain, Monkey D Luffy," she said wearily.

Adoni choked-coughed before he smiled amiably again._ Oh, he's your captain,_ he said cheerfully. Then, without changing expression and in the exact same tone, _I do believe the world is ending._

The crew sighed in long-suffering. "He does give that impression, doesn't he?" Usopp sighed.

Adoni chuckled before he sobered. _But to get to the point. You were all aware of Saya's absence today, right?_

"WHAT?!" Luffy yelled. "Is she in trouble?! What happened?! Did she get caught by a kidnapper?!"

Sanji punched the air. "SAYA-SAN, DON'T WORRY I'M COMING TO SAVE YOU!!" he roared.

There was a loud thunk, scaring the daylights out of several people. Zoro had slammed his tankard down on the table. "What happened?" he asked quietly.

Adoni eyed the swordsman, a calculating look on his face, before he sort of leaned against the wall. _Saya's in trouble, _he said bluntly. _I don't know what it is or how bad it is… but believe me, it's bad. Bad enough for me to come out of my grave and tell the only people who are capable of helping her._ He smiled. _But no pressure or anything. I'll only haunt you to the end of your days if you fail._

Everyone sweatdropped. "No pressure, right…"

**Next: Rescue plan was about to commence, but it was suddenly delayed. 'Delayed' being about as good a word to describe what happens as 'breeze' describes 'cyclone'. What the hell is Saya doing, trying to attack all the Straw Hats at once?! **


	8. No Return

**Author's Note: School... it's a terrible thing that takes away at least eight hours of my day just to torment me and take away time from my writing... I'm sorry for the long wait! I'm really trying to update, I promise!**

**Oh, um, sorry to say this, but I'm not going to be posting responses to reviews that are like, 'that's great' and end there or things along that line. It's sort of hard to respond to that sort of review, just repeating 'thanks' every single chapter... Sorry again!**

**luckyblackcat13: Wandolf is a disgusting character. It doesn't get any better, I'll tell you that. Writing about him isn't too much fun, but it helps if the bad guy in the story is _bad_, know what I mean?**

**SoDesuKa: Yup, no pressure at all. I love Adoni too, he's just awesome! He's so awesome that I decided to be nice to him in this chapter... Haha, I had lots of fun writing the Luffy scene last chapter, and it just keeps getting better. XD**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Yeah. Well if there's a military, there's going to be incapable people who just want positions of power. XP Oh geez, Hakuro was so bad!! I felt a little sorry for Yoki though, dying so horribly like that...**

**JuniperScaymoore: I'm trying, honestly I am! I promise I am! I promise, I promise, I promise!! It's coming, but see, a big theme in the movie is 'brotherhood', and it's really hard to fit Saya into that without sort of smashing that to smitherines. I don't want to do that. TT.TT Please try to be patient with me!**

**The Faerie of Darkness: Wow... I like that word, 'yayeth'. XD Mind if I borrow it to annoy my friends? If it's not obvious by now what the pairing is, either the reader is really slow or I'm doing a really bad job writing this story. Junior Mints? I can't say I like those too much, sorry to say.**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: 'sigh' One of these days, I'll get one... maybe... Feel free to borrow the ghost idea. It wasn't originally mine anyways, oh you know, only half a million stories have got a ghost haunting the pages somewhere. 'Ed's Saya'? XD Sure, but she's not exactly mine. She's her own character now, so feel free to ask her. I really hope you feel better soon!**

**unexpectablyinsane (anon): It slows down, just a little in this chapter. Just a little. It's ONE PIECE after all, how is it ever slow? Never a dull moment... Classic One Piece, yes, I LOVE those moments. I personally love Adoni's 'no pressure' line myself. Don't read it before work, you'll be late! If you're reading this before your work, shoo! Go away! Read it later!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Eight: No Return

Adoni had a good time with the Straw Hats. Despite their subject matter, he had thoroughly enjoyed himself, considering it had been his first time talking to another living being for almost eight years. They talked and discussed what to do, considering they had no idea where Saya was, but the logical thing to do was to find her first. And any search would start in the village.

At Adoni's request, they agreed to change their sleeping pattern. Since he couldn't leave the house where he had died while the sun was out, he wouldn't have been of any use to them at all. They would start their search that very night.

Walking back to the village had also been an interesting experience…

Nami gave a big yawn. "Damn I'm tired," she said sleepily.

"Nami-san's so cute when she yawns!" Sanji sang, on his little tornado of hearts.

"Yutz," Zoro muttered.

Unfortunately, Sanji heard. "Who're you calling a yutz, you bastard?"

"I forget," Zoro said blandly.

"Not again…" Usopp groaned as Robin chuckled.

Chopper blinked. "Huh? Where's Luffy?"

Zoro looked down at the little reindeer a bit irritably. "What do you mean? He's right there… or… maybe not…"

Luffy somehow got separated from the group. Following his footprints in the snow, they found him oogling at a beetle on a tree at least ten meters away from the path.

"How the hell can you _see_ something from that far away?!" Usopp demanded.

"It's cool!" Luffy laughed, poking it. The beetle got a stress mark on its head and chomped on his finger. He yelled and shook his hand back and forth. "AH!! IT'S BITING ME! OUCH, GET IT OFF GETITOFFMEGETITOFFMEGETITOFFMEGETITOFFMEGETITOFFMEGETITO-"

Nami and Usopp punched their captain's face into the snow. The beetle, more surprised at finding itself in the snow more than anything, released its claim on Luffy's finger and flew away.

"Do you have ANY idea of the situation we are in right now?!" Nami demanded.

Luffy blinked, then a flash had suddenly come across his face. He stood and ran into the woods, not even bothering to wipe the snow off his face. "SAYA, WHERE ARE YOU DAMMIT?!" he roared.

"YOU'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY, THE PATH IS OVER THERE, YOU MORON!!" Chopper, Nami, and Usopp all yelled.

"Well let's get on with it," Zoro muttered, walking off.

"Kenbou (Swordsman)-san," Robin commented. "That's the wrong way."

Zoro froze where he was and twitched before walking in the opposite direction.

"You're still going the wrong way," Robin chuckled. She pointed. "The path is that way."

"You've sure got a shitty sense of direction," Sanji laughed.

A stress mark pounded on Zoro's head. "What was that, you dartboard brow?!"

"You looking for a fight, bastard Marimo?!"

Usopp watched them fight, sweatdropping. "Idiots…" He pointed them out to Chopper. "Look at them closely," he intoned, before jabbing his thumb at himself. "Then see me! I am the Great Captain Usopp!!"

"AWESOME!!" Chopper screamed, his eyes turning into stars.

"SAYA!!" Luffy was somewhere far away by this point, his voice echoed back through the woods back to them. "SAAAAAAAYA!! WHERE ARE YOOOOOOOOOU?!?!?!"

Nami fell to her knees, a little black cloud over her head. "Why am I surrounded by idiots?!"

Robin laughed and patted her shoulder sympathetically. "It may work out somehow, Kokaishi-san."

Adoni watched the whole thing, stunned. Were these people really going be able to save his little sister?

* * *

One of the Marines came to make a report about three days later. Apparently, there had been a total of seven people wandering the streets at night for the past few days. They were very suspicious characters, and no one in town had seen them too often before. They definitely didn't come from here, and it was unmistakable that one of them was the 100,000,000 Beli head, Straw Hat Luffy.

Wandolf nodded his head and dismissed the soldier before looking at Saya, amused. "So they consider themselves your nakama," he murmured softly, his mouth about two inches from her ear, causing shivers of disgust to run up and down her back. "But I think the question is, my dear, do _you_ do the same?"

Saya stood. She had been sitting on this damn cushion for almost four days. She was getting stiff, being half between having her nerves rubbed raw out of worry and constant headache at Wandolf's droning about how great he was. Saying the same things over and over again…

Wandolf opened his eyes. "Where are you going?"

"For a walk," Saya muttered darkly.

Wandolf cleared his throat. "'I am going for a walk, Wandolf-_sama_,'" he corrected softly.

Saya boiled with suppressed fury inside, but she swallowed it with extreme difficulty. It was bad enough doubling as his cute little pet and a weapon, but this meant giving up whatever shred of her pride she had left.

_Everyone_...

"I…" Saya swallowed hard. "I'm going for a walk, Wandolf…-sama." The words tasted like bile on her tongue.

Wandolf nodded. "You have my permission. Be back soon, or else I will pine for you," he called. His harem hissed at Saya's retreating back.

_He's a pine and I'm a damned thorn bush_, Saya thought bitterly, storming through the halls. There was a huge staircase in the entrance hall. A long, marble-laid path led to double doors about three heads taller than Saya, columns supporting the ceilings, and smaller doors leading further into the mansion lining the walls.

She wasted no time, heading straight for the door. Once outside, she filled her lungs with the piercing cold air, feeling it burn. It felt good, as if the sickly-sweet perfume smell was being burned away. A tinge of salt carried found its way into her nose and she sucked it up greedily. There was nothing she loved better than the ocean… Adoni had taught her that. She felt a pang. Was this the only way she would be able to be close to the ocean now? They had taken away her pikestaff, with the bell still hanging on it. She had no idea where they put it, but she sure as hell wasn't leaving without it.

It was almost pointless to hope… even if she did escape from here, she would have to do it after everyone had left. The chances of catching up were slim; she knew well the dangers of sailing alone on the Grand Line. She had no idea where to find a Log Pose either.

And even if she did catch up to them, would they welcome her back? Especially after what she was planning to do… She ground her teeth, resisting the urge to chop something into pieces. She wouldn't have been able to do it anyways… her pikestaff was somewhere in the mansion, probably in a nice cozy vault somewhere.

She almost wanted to just lie down in the snow and cry. But she had to stay strong… she had to, for all of them. She couldn't break down now, not when she was this close. Biting her lip so hard she drew blood, she walked slowly down the mountain, to the coast. To a little cove about a mile away from the town, specifically. She would have to be quick.

* * *

This was bad. Almost four days had passed, and they still hadn't found Saya. Anything could have happened in that time, but it was clear that Saya was nowhere in the village. The village, however, was only a small part of the island. She could be anywhere.

The time spent did have a positive effect though. The crew had quite a good time, getting to know Adoni. He spoke freely with them about everything… everything except for their past. His and Saya's.

_She can tell you herself if she wants to_, was his answer. _I'm not going to spoil her fun._

On the third night, Zoro was preparing to go back to sleep after a full night's searching. Adoni was lingering around on the ship for a precious few minutes as the first grey streaks of dawn started to touch the sky.

Zoro looked at the ghost. "Can you tell me something?" he asked.

_Depends on what the question is_, Adoni replied.

"You can tell what Saya's feeling, right?"

_So that's what you want to know…_ Adoni gave Zoro a grin, though there was no humor in it. Weariness, maybe. _Do you want it condensed?_

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Zoro demanded irritably.

_I'll take that as a 'yes', since it's all we have time for now. If I was going to elaborate on it… we'd need another night._ Adoni sat himself down on the banister and closed his eyes. _At the moment… imagine the way's she's felt for the last eight years, then try about a million times worse. Pain, regret... Throw in extreme protectiveness, which is new, and that pretty much sums it up._

Luffy looked at Adoni strangely. "Well… so how do you feel about that?"

Zoro jumped about a foot into the air. "YOU! When did you-?!"

Luffy grinned. "The whole time."

Adoni sighed. _Watch closely, both of you._ He stuck his hand straight through the banister, making it come out on the other side. _That's proof that I'm dead._

"What does that have to do with your feelings?" Luffy wanted to know.

_What I _feel_ about being dead is inconsequential to the fact that I _am _dead. Get my point?_

Luffy smiled. "I see. That's okay then."

Zoro just grinned.

Adoni glanced towards the horizon and grimaced. _See ya later._ Then he disappeared for the day.

* * *

Shortly after Adoni left, Zoro was fast asleep. A twig suddenly cracked, and he opened his eyes, even though he didn't move. Mostly everyone else was asleep, though they were in the hold, and Robin was on watch.

"There appears to be someone here, Kenbou-san," she called.

"I know." Zoro put a hand on the hilt of his swords, narrowing his eyes.

"Shall we wake the others up?"

"If there's going to be a fight, they'll wake up soon enough." This reply, however, did not come from Zoro.

It came from Saya, standing at the entrance of the cove.

Zoro choked before he sat bolt upright. "You've finally come back?!" he spluttered. "Do you know how hard we've been looking for you these past few days? Where the hell have you been?!"

Robin smiled. "Welcome back."

Saya clenched her teeth. Their Log would set, if not tomorrow, then the day afterwards. But they needed to leave, as soon as possible. Without her. There was no other choice.

That would probably take some convincing, without telling them her situation. If she told them what Wandolf was doing to her, they would never leave. And that would mean that the light of hope she had found after so long would vanish into nothing. That couldn't happen. She wouldn't let it.

Saya smiled brightly. "Sorry for making you wait so long," she said, stepping into the cove. "I've been… busy." She swallowed hard.

Zoro blinked. That smile looked a little pained. There were dark shadows etched under her eyes, visible even from this distance. And also… "Saya, where's your pikestaff?" he asked.

"Somewhere else," she answered vaguely. She tried to give a convincing chuckle, which ended up sounding more like a sob. She prayed they couldn't tell the difference. "Where's everyone? I have something important to tell all of you."

"Sleeping," Robin answered. "We've been looking for you during the nights."

Saya sighed. "Can you tell this to them then?" she asked. This was probably good. She wouldn't have to face all of them, at least. She swallowed again. Stuffing her hands in her pockets, she clenched her fists. Her nails dug into her palms, making deep indentures in the skin. "I…"

Zoro waited, his nerves humming like he was in combat. He tensed.

Despite her best efforts, Saya couldn't completely stop her voice from shaking a little. She put on a smile, hoping to cover it up. "I'm sorry. I won't be sailing with you," she said.

There was a dead silence. Robin blinked. "This is a surprise," she commented.

"I'm going to stay here, on Daizuke," Saya said quietly. "I've thought about it, and I realized that I want to stay here." Well at least it wasn't totally a lie. She smiled. "Tell the others goodbye for me, okay?"

"Dear me," Robin said. "But you're aware that someone can only leave the crew when the Captain gives his permission.

Saya pulled a face. "But Luffy doesn't have to give me permission directly. All he needs to do is say I'm leaving. My presence has nothing to do with it," she grunted. If this took much longer, that damn Wandolf would send someone to search for her… "Zoro!" she called.

Robin waved. "Sorry, he can't hear you." Five blinking arrows pointed to the blank space where Zoro had been sitting. "I think he's gone to wake the others up."

Saya stiffened. "What?!"

Before anything else could be said, Luffy came bounding out. "Saya!" he laughed. "You came back! Where've you been?"

"SAYA-CHAAAAAAAAAAAN, YOU'VE FINALLY COME BACK TO ME!" Sanji roared, flying out of the hold on his tornado of hearts. Need I say more?

"Yo, Saya!" Usopp yawned, climbing out of the hold.

Nami stormed out of her room, slamming the door open. "SAYA, do you know how much trouble you've caused for us?! Where the hell have you been?!" she demanded irritably.

Saya nearly died right then and there. This wasn't going well. All of them thought she was coming back, and it looked like they weren't taking 'no' for an answer.

Well if they weren't going to take 'no' for an answer, she would force them them to. She'd have to do it quick. It wasn't going to be easy, and she had about ten minutes at the most. Oh joy.

Considering her options, she chose the simplest one. She turned tail and _ran_. She ran like hell, being sure to step in places where the snow had been melting so she wouldn't leave footprints. She thought she might have left one or two, but that wouldn't matter. She heard them calling her name and almost let out a sob. There was nothing more she wanted to do than to go back... but she _couldn't_. She _couldn't..._

It was in this way when the Straw Hats leapt off the ship and ran out of the cove, there was no sign of her anywhere, except a lonely wind whistling through the trees.

* * *

Adoni was experimenting, out of pure boredom. These days, he found that the daylight hours were extremely dull compared to the nights he had been spending with the Straw Hats. Passing through different substances gave him different sensations, he had realized. He had some fun passing through wood, the stove, the bed...

After a little while, he, quite by accident, came across the pipe he had used to defend Saya a long time ago. He grinned and without thinking, he picked it up.

Yes, he _picked it up._

Or some sort of ghostly replica of it came away in his hands, anyways. Surprised, he promptly dropped it. It melted slowly into the floor in a wash of pale light. He tried picking up the physical part again. This time, he didn't drop its ghost, and it stayed in his hand. Curious, he tapped the ghostly apparation against a chair.

It made a tapping sound. _It actually made contact with the chair._

Elated, he tried to pick up everything in the house. But he soon realized that he could only pick up things that he had touched while he was, well, alive. If, for example, he tried to touch the little dust bunny that had formed in the corner, nothing would come away in his hand. The pipe and the kitchen knives could come in handy though.

And if he really could touch anything he had touched in his life, he knew there was one more weapon which he really wanted; his favorite, and his prize. But they'd have to find Saya first.

Adoni grinned wolfishly. The future days suddenly looked to be a lot more fun.

**Next: How the hell did the crew survive without Robin and all her smartness? How is Adoni going to put his newfound skill to use? Why does Wandolf keep laughing whenever he looks at Saya? Is Luffy ever going to remember that he accidently found a white mansion on his trek up the mountain on the first day? Hwo much more can Saya take? WhY aM i AsKiNg YoU aLl ThEsE qUeStIoNs? **

**Maybe so you can look forward to the next chapter! XD**


	9. Smashings and Crashings

**Author's Note: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah... almost... there... winter... break... This week has been cruel to me! I've had nothing but test after test after test... today I am fried. I had three tests in a row today!! THREE!! TT.TT Oh well, I finally got a new chapter up...**

**Mr. Thumbsup: The seventh level of hell is a frozen pool?! How does that work?! Is everyone, like, frozen in it or something? Eternally frozen? Meh... Wandolf really is a bastard though.**

**LuffysAngel: Thanks! I actually really like your story too, so you'd better update since I did!**

**Comic Freaks United: Ero-Wandolf huh? XD Couldn't have put it better myself. Yogurt is yummy... blueberry yogurt especially. Congrats on your no-work day! Or day off... whatever you want to call it. I HAVE NO HOMEWORK TODAY SINCE I HAD THREE TESTS IN A ROW. YAY!!!**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: It'll me nice to find love I guess... nothing compares with a person who really cares about you. **

**Saya: I can't use alchemy in this world... take lots of advil but be sure not to overdose or you'll die! 'smile' And for your throat... drink lots of water and talk as little as possible if you want to sing. And get lots of rest!**

**Thank you Dr. Saya...**

**Spirit of Ryuu (via PM): Thanks! But who's Ren Tao? And Yoh Asakura? I've never heard of them... is it Chinese? Tao is a Chinese name...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, nor do I have any wish to since I would probably mess up the storyline**

Chapter Nine: Smashings and Crashings

Saya sat like a brick on one of Wandolf's cushions. She stared fixedly at one point on the wall, _trying_ to ignore the fact that one of Wandolf's long arms was wrapped around her, and his hand was tangling itself in her hair like an overgrown spider.

Remember; trying doesn't mean succeeding. And at this point, Saya was failing miserably.

Suddenly Wandolf stopped talking and stared at her. "You've been very quiet, little kitten."

"I'm not a damn kitty," Saya snapped.

Wandolf rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "It's been five days and I still haven't been able to tame you…" he murmured.

Saya resisted the urge to spit in his face. "Do you want to know something? A trick to tame me?"

Wandolf's face gave away no emotion, but he flicked his eyes at her. "Hm?"

"I don't give in to bastards I hate," Saya said with a straight face. She almost smiled though; the look on Wandolf's face was priceless. It was so satisfying to give him a little bit of the huge hunk of revenge that was piling up in his debit account under that category.

Then that roar which came out of Wandolf's throat was supposed to be laughter. "So I've bought myself a stubborn kitten!"

Saya wanted to punch his face in. Really, really, really badly. "I told you, I'm not a damn kitten. And I'm not for sale."

Wandolf suddenly leaned down and tilted her face upwards, about an inch away from his own. "Do not push me," he breathed softly. "I am a very unstable man. Who knows what could set me off, even if you are quite a pretty thing. Did you forget already? You sold yourself to me for the lives of your precious _nakama_. I could do whatever I liked with you, and so long as those people are still in this part of the ocean, you wouldn't be able to do a single thing. Do we understand each other?"

Saya's face didn't betray her disgust, but she couldn't stop herself from going pale. Wandolf smiled, knowing he had won.

* * *

Luffy had finally remembered (through some miracle and much later that evening) that he had run into a large, white mansion at the top of the mountain on their first day here. After reporting this to the crew and Adoni, they decided they might as well go check it out since they had no other leads. Adoni had been informed on the events of the previous day, and he was shocked. He let the whole crew know it too. 

The trek up the mountain was eventful, to say the least.

_Are you really sure that-_

"Adoni!" Zoro snapped. "If you ask me one more time I'm going to-"

_I'm sorry, I'm sorry! But I really want to make sure, you guys are absolutely positive that it was really Saya who tried to quit from the crew before running away?_

"For the _hundredth _time, _yes._"

"SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Luffy's roar echoed through the woods. "WHERE AAAAAARE YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU?!"

"Pipe down will ya?" Usopp groaned. "You're going to wake up the whole town."

"We're not even in town though," Luffy pointed out.

It had been almost nothing short of a wonder that they had been able to pick up Saya's trail. Luffy was all for running all over the island until they found her, to general rejection. Saya, having been born and breed on a winter island, knew exactly how to conceal herself in snow when the need arose. However, eight years of purposely avoiding every winter island possible had led to a certain deterioration in her skills, and Robin had been the one who had spotted half a footprint in the snow after they had searched the woods for about an hour and a half.

As Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper were all dancing in celebration of the discovery, she was able to determine which roughly way it was pointing before the threesome had lost their balance and fallen on it, squishing it out of existence.

When Robin said the footprint was pointing up the mountain, it was FINALLY then that Luffy remembered that he had seen a white mansion on the top of the mountain with rather heavy security.

Big house at the top of the mountain. Saya's footprint leading up the mountain. Two and two make four. And straw hat with bruises from his crew fro his stupidity was still grinning and laughing… and quite lost.

"Is it really safe to let this guy lead the way to the house?" Sanji asked, indicating Luffy.

Nami sighed. "Well Luffy's the only one who's seen the place," she said hopelessly.

Luffy scanned the line of trees in front of him. "That's weird, I was sure it was here… maybe it's this direction… or that one…"

_Zoro, I'm asking you to really think, are you sure-_

"Adoni, shut it."

_But that's so strange! That really isn't like Saya, especially the running away part-_

"WE KNOW THAT!" the whole crew yelled at him, just as irritated as Zoro was at hearing Adoni repeat this same thing more or less for the better part of an hour and a half.

_Okay, okay!_ Adoni raised his hands in surrender. Then he sighed. _But if she really did that… she would have a really good reason to. _

"Well I, for one, would like to know what that is," Nami grumbled. "Doesn't she realize how much trouble she's causing for us? I ought to charge her for this!"

Chopper looked up and sweatdropped. "Zoro… you're going the wrong way…"

Zoro froze in midstep and realized that indeed, he was going off at a perpendicular angle to the rest of the group.

Sanji laughed. "That's some shitty sense of direction you've got! If Chopper hadn't caught you-"

"Shut it!"

"What was that, Moss-head?"

"Are you looking for a fight?! I'll give one to you!"

Usopp sweatdropped. "Er… is it just me or is Zoro really irritated?"

Chopper shrugged. "Well Adoni _was_ bugging him the whole way up here…"

"Maybe it was this way… or was it over here? Or maybe all the way around? This way? Over there?"

Robin chuckled as Nami leaned against a tree and slid to the ground in a cloud of gloom.

* * *

That night, Saya lay staring at the ceiling of the little room she had been assigned. It was little, but that didn't mean it wasn't comfortable. The sheets had to be silk, and there was even a window which let moonlight through. 

Of course, the window was useless as an escape, thanks to steel bars which crisscrossed over the surface of the glass. Saya had seen from the first night that it would be impossible for her to get them out, embedded as they were into the stone.

Even if she had been able to get them out, they would've made a tremendous amount of noise and the three guards standing outside the door would look in to see what the hell was going on. Guards made a big deal about knowing every damn thing that happened, especially if it made lots of noise on their watch.

The room was filled with pretty, delicate vases on little three-legged stands. The damn night table was porcelain even. Flowery wallpaper, pictures of dried flowers, a small bathroom with gold-lined sink and shower, even gold-lined toilet for crying out loud.

Saya hated it.

A closet stood next to the bed, filled with the finest silk kimono with intricate designs and stunning colors (all of which Saya had pointedly ignored, continuing to wear day after day her own clothes). The guy seemed to have an obsession with gold; upon careful investigation, the gold threads that were a part of the embroidery of every kimono, be it bird or fish or landscape or whatnot, were real gold threads. As in, _real_ gold.

Nami would've loved this place. For all his stupidity, Wandolf was _loaded_. There was probably a huge treasury somewhere, just waiting to be broken in to… Saya quickly changed her line of thought. Thinking of Nami would make her think of the rest of the crew… She shook her head and concentrated on one of the countless flowers which decorated the room.

Flowers. Flowers. Flowers.

Okay. Her thoughts were under control again.

Saya wasn't an idiot. She knew what Wandolf was eventually going to use her for, and she hated it. He hadn't done anything yet, not even kissing, but there was little doubt that something like that was going to happen soon. She _hated_ being helpless. She absolutely _hated _it. It was too much like lying on top of that bed eight years ago, watching Adoni slip away…

The guards were quite surprised to hear loud bangs and smashings. Opening the door, the first one received a vase in his face, which shattered on impact and broke his nose. The porcelain table was already in fragments, along with the window. Apparently, the legs of the table had been pushed through the steel bars and shattered the glass beyond. The other two guards shut the door hurriedly as another vase smashed against it.

Saya was having a temper tantrum. In a way, it felt good. She hadn't let herself go like this for a while. Eight years is a long time to cram bursting emotions into a little box, after all.

* * *

"FINALLY FOUND IT!!" Luffy laughed. "Here, here!" he waved. 

"We can see that," Sanji grumbled. "But damn, we spent a hell of a long time finding this place."

Luffy put his hands behind his head. "Well, we're here now so it's all good."

"No it's not!" Nami roared, smacking him on the head and pulling him back behind the bush where they were all hiding. "We've been running around the whole damn island for at least three hours thanks to you!"

Luffy made a thumbs up, oblivious to the bump that had risen on his head. "But it all worked out!"

The combined Nami-Usopp attack was sufficient to knock their dimwitted captain through one of the trees.

Robin looked up. "Can you hear that?" she asked suddenly.

"Hear what?" Nami demanded, still irritated.

Everyone fell silent. Sure enough, there was the sound of people yelling and things smashing; expensive things. It came from a broken window on the third story.

Adoni suddenly grinned, a smile full of unholy amusement. _Two guesses as to wh'is up there making all that noise._

"Are you going to go?" Zoro asked, glancing at the ghost.

Adoni looked up at the window for a moment. Zoro could clearly see that he was hesitating. Then…

_No. I'll stay with you guys. You might need a little help to get up there._ Adoni pulled one of the ghostly kitchen knives out of his belt and spun it in one hand.

Zoro grinned. "Okay."

Sanji blinked. "Hey, that's an interesting knife you've got there," he said. "Can you cut anything with it though? It looks… well, like _you_."

In answer, Adoni stabbed the ground. When he pulled out the knife, it left a cut in the ground. _Yes, I'm dead. You can say it you know, I don't really mind._ He grinned. _But at least this way I'm not completely useless. I only appear to people I choose, so won't some guards be surprised when cuts start appearing all over their bodies, apparently from nowhere?_

"Alright, so how're we going in?" Usopp asked, eyeing the numerous guards going about their patrols. "Security's pretty tight, so we'll have to be careful…"

"Saya's up there, right?" Luffy asked, pointing to the third story window.

"We don't even know that!" Nami hissed. "It could be someone having a temper tantrum… Adoni, could you go check?"

Adoni shook his head. _It's not that I don't want to,_ he said hastily, seeing all their faces. _But I can't fly you know. Hover about two feet off the ground, I can do that._

Usopp sat. "How are we going to figure out who's really up there or not? It's the wrong angle for me to try to see through my goggles…"

"Gomu Gomu no…"

Zoro was the only one who realized what was happening as the others argued and discussed about the best way to enter the building. Luffy's arms were stretched all the way to the room that might or might not be Saya's window, grabbing onto the sides of the broken window. He latched onto his captain, grabbing him around the waist in a futile attempt to act as a restraint. "Luffy! You moron, don't-"

"ROCKET!!"

The crew watched dumbfounded as Luffy and Zoro went hurtling off towards the building at an unbelievable speed.

The silence broke. "YOU DUMBASS!!" they roared.

* * *

"ROCKET!!" 

_Damn it…_ was all Zoro had time to think. Then in the split second before he and Luffy made contact with the window, he saw the steel bars that were criss-crossing the entrance. He didn't think twice. He let Luffy go with one hand and, with little difficulty, drew his sword and slashed twice, hard and quickly. He barely made it in time, and he and Luffy catapulted right through the resulting gap in the bars.

* * *

"ROCKET!!" 

Saya was surprised, to say the least, when a familiar voice was heard through the window.

She was even more surprised to see steel bars on her window cut so easily.

But she was most surprised by the two figures who flew through the window and smashed the bed, with all its silken glamour, into smithereens.

Luffy stood and dusted himself off, laughing. "Whew, that was fun!" he said. "Good job cutting the bars, Zoro!"

Zoro punched the back of Luffy's head. "YOU MORON, ACTUALLY THINK ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE FOR ONCE!"

"But we're here now, and so it's all good!"

"NO IT'S NOT, YOU BASTARD!"

It took Saya a moment to realize she was not hallucinating. She swallowed, hard. "Guys…"

Luffy and Zoro turned and actually saw Saya. Luffy's face lit up. "Look, see? She was here after all!"

Zoro stopped shouting and sheathed his sword. "So, what were you saying earlier?" he asked Saya directly. "I forgot."

Saya didn't know whether to scream with frustration, kill them both, or just lie down and die. To do them all would've been nice at the moment.

**Next: Usopp, Nami, Chopper, Sanji, and Adoni charge madly through the mansion, Robin backing them up. But what happens when they get separated? What's the interesting stuff that Adoni's found on the top floor? How are Luffy and Zoro going to convince Saya to be rescued? And what's going to happen when Wandolf is disturbed from his rest by all the ruckus?**

**ONLY I KNOW, MWAHAHAHAHA! But you all will too, as soon as I can write the next chapter! Now review!**


	10. Battle Commence!

**Author's Note: I'M SO SO SO SO SO SORRY THIS UPDATE TOOK SO LONG!! I DIDN'T KNOW I WAS GOING TO BE AWAY ALL VACATION!! 'sniffs' **

**JuniperScaymoore: Hi hi! I'm good, thanks for asking! Apples are good, I agree. I promise my other story is coming, I promise! I really do! It's coming! I've almost figured it all out!**

**LuffysAngel: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you looked at this story, I really enjoyed yours too. :D**

**The Faerie of Darkness: Blah, I have midterms in three weeks. TT.TT Saya's fine, I promise. Getting uber lost is a major part in the plotline, I can promise you that. Brownie appears in the chapter, I also promise that. Erm... who are those other characters you mentioned? I don't know them...**

**yuMeNami: I wish I could kill him now, but then there wouldn't be much of a plotline, now would there? XD**

**SoDesuKa: 'smiles' Well, if they aren't idiots, then it's not One Piece. At least, in Luffy's case. The others are allowed to be smart once in a while, with the exception of Robin who is uber smart.**

**Mr. Thumbsup: Cliffhangers? They're my joy!! Hahaha! Except when I'm the reader... yeah... XD**

**TheCrazyScotswomanOfDOOM: Are you feeling any better? I was away for a long time, so I hope your sickness has passed!! I hope! **

**Comic Freaks United: Three tests in a row is going to be nothing compared to midterm week. TT.TT I wouldn't let that bastard Wandolf do anything to Saya! No way. Not ever. 'fume fume' I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**luckyblackcat13: Sorry you had to wait so long for this update! I hope this chapter's worth the wait. **

**And-You-Thought-I-Cared: Being grounded is no fun. XD I do not apologize for my flame, that story was pure CRACK. O.o I get shivers just from remembering it...**

**Call-me-Lie-chan: Thanks! It's always good to hear from a new reader. Luffy's randomness is something we can all love, but he has a serious side too, which I find really amazing. He's a natural-born leader, which is something I bet you don't hear too ofthen. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

Chapter Ten: Battle Commence

"Well… so now what do we do?" Chopper asked as the guards yelled and started calling to each other about the unexpected intruders. "He's done it again."

Nami sighed. "Guess we've got no choice…" She stood up and arranged her Clima Tact. "Everyone, we're just going to have to charge in and beat up anyone who's stupid enough to get in our way."

Usopp waved his hands. "Are you insane?"

Robin nodded thoughtfully. "It seems that's our only choice."

Usopp stared at her open-mouthed. "You too?!"

Sanji lit his cigarette. "Well, we'd better get moving. We're going to be found any second."

"That's true," the rest of the crew agreed.

They stood and all grinned at each other before they burst from the cover of the trees, yelling their lungs out and charging a bunch of very surprised guards.

* * *

"Hey… I'm dreaming…" Saya slapped herself. "I have to be!" 

Zoro raised a hand. "H-Hey, don't do that…"

Saya suddenly turned on them, pretty much beating them to a pulp. "Why are you guys here?! Why are you here?! Go away!"

Luffy caught both of Saya's wrists. "We came here to get you, what do you think?!" he demanded. "You're supposed to realize that when people bust through your window."

"I didn't want you to get me!" Saya freed herself with a jerk and slapped him open-handed. "Why are you here?!"

Luffy ignored the slap. "Like I said, we-"

"Luffy," Saya interrupted. She met his eyes directly. "Get out of here. I am no longer a part of your crew."

"You're not the one who decides that," Luffy snapped. "If you want to leave the crew, you need the captain's permission."

"The captain's…" Saya choked.

Luffy's look silenced her. "Saya. You're not leaving the crew."

Zoro grinned. "Give it up. Once this guy decides something, there's no stopping him."

"I…" Saya's look turned into rage. "I don't care about any pirate taboos or traditions or any of that shit! I'm the one who decides what I do." Why did he have to make this even harder? Leaving the crew was painful enough, but they just had to drag it out, didn't they?

"Saya, why are you trying to make us leave?" Zoro asked.

Saya paled. "That's…I mean, you guys…"

_Multiple cannons pointing directly at the undefended ship in the cove, ready to fire at any second…_

"If you're being forced to do it…" Luffy grabbed the cuff of Saya's shirt. "Then why didn't you tell us?! We're your _nakama_!"

"I'm not being forced-"

Luffy's gaze silenced her. There was something that was like nothing she had ever seen on his face before; something dark and furious. When he spoke, there was some dangerous undercurrent in his voice. "Saya. Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying… I want you to leave…" Saya could feel her defenses falling. She fell to her knees and clenched her fists. "But I… I…" Suddenly, something inside her calmed down. After being cold for so long, it was warm light. "Luffy, Zoro, please… I want you to leave this island, but please… take me with you." Dark spots appeared on the floor. In the dim light, it almost looked like stars were falling from her eyes. "Take me to sea with you…"

Luffy laughed and Zoro grinned. "Okay."

Saya swiped at her eyes and chuckled weakly. "Somehow… that seemed a little too short…"

Zoro's grin broadened. "What? You want us to make a speech or something?"

"No." Saya stood and swiped at her eyes. "I don't like speeches. I've never had enough patience to listen to the whole thing." Then she remembered. "Shit, the cannons!"

Luffy blinked. "What cannons?"

* * *

"Cyclone Tempo!" Nami crashed through the guards. "Alright guys, we're in!" 

"Alright, let's go!" Chopper yelled.

"Seis Fleurs!" Hands appeared on a man who was about to attack Nami. "Clutch!"

Nami yelled and ducked as the man flew over her head.

Robin smiled. "Be careful, Kokaishi-san."

"Y-Yeah…"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!" Usopp was running wildly from a group who were waving katana at him. "No! Go away! Leave me alone!" He tore up the grand staircase and turned left, ducking into this room and that hallway. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Usopp!" Sanji yelled. "Damn it!"

_I'll go get him_, Adoni said, floating up the stairs. _Everyone, do your best and don't die!_

Nami sweatdropped. "Thanks Adoni."

"Party Table!" Sanji roared, kicking at a circle of attackers who were attempting to surround him. "Alright, you go do that!"

There was little talk that followed for several minutes after that, as everyone was wrapped up in their own battles. But that was what cost them.

* * *

Adoni looked around. He had no idea where he was, or how he had gotten there. This feeling felt familiar for some reason, but he couldn't quite remember why. Being lost, that is. 

Oh right. He used to get lost in the forest all the time, and Saya would usually be keeping dinner warm for him. What usually happened was that Saya would get impatient after five minutes and run to find him. So he would find his way home about an hour later to find that she was gone and dinner was burning.

A chirp brought him back to his surroundings. He looked around to see Brownie perched on a cannon, eyeing him reproachfully with a black eye.

He smiled. _You're right. I shouldn't be daydreaming, especially when everyone's fighting their hardest to save Saya. I should be doing the same._

But what could he do? He had no idea where she was, having completely lost his sense of direction. On top of that, he had no idea where _he_ was either.

Furthermore, he had no idea where the others had gone either. He hit his forehead. _Well this is just fantastic... _

Then he actually looked around to see where he was and raised an eyebrow. _Hm, why would a mansion on top of a mountain need a cannon room?_ He mused on it for a moment before he sweatdropped. _Damn it, I don't have time to do this! The others, where'd they go?!_

Though he didn't know it, at that exact moment, his statement was pretty much what was echoing in everyone else's minds.

* * *

Sanji took a deep drag on his cigarette and glanced at Usopp. "So? What do we do now?" 

Usopp's nose was trembling, and his knees were knocking together. "I… I don't know…"

They were in a very elegantly decorated corridor, with portraits lining either side. But besides the fact that they were obviously lost, the man in front of them easily topped seven feet, with a trim haircut and neat suit. The big steel staff in his hand suggested that he wasn't the ice cream man. And he did not look very happy. "I am the Head of security here," he rumbled. "You will not go one step farther, Straw Hat pirates. How dare you infiltrate this place. What is your intention."

Usopp winced. "Why is he speaking in monotone…?"

"What is your intention. Answer me or suffer the consequences."

Sanji grinned. "We're here to get back an important nakama. You going to get in our way?"

"I will not allow you scum to go one step further. Saya-sama is no longer your nakama, she belongs to the Master. Surrender now, while you are still unhurt."

"L-L-L-Like hell we're going to surrender our precious nakama to that jerk!!" Usopp yelled, his knees knocking together even as he put on a brave pose, throwing out his chest. "Y-You're the one who should surrender! For I am the g-great Captaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaain Usopp-sama!!" Then he ran and ducked into a niche far behind Sanji's back. "Sanji-kun, the rest is up to you!"

Sanji relit his cigarette. "For goodness sake…"

"I will not let you pass."

"Then let's get on with it, big guy."

Usopp shivered as the two started the traditional stare-down before big fights. "Everyone…" he groaned. "Where'd you all go?"

* * *

Nami's eye twitched. She was having a staring contest with a small person who was about half her height. And I say person, because he… she… it? had on a heavy cloak, from which only two bright blue eyes were showing from beneath the hood. 

Chopper was hiding behind a pillar. "Scary…"

The blue eyes snapped towards him in a seemingly malevolent glare. He screamed and ran in circles for a moment before tripping over his own feet and falling down.

Suddenly, the eyes filled with tears. The hood slipped off, revealing a little girl as she fell to her knees and sobbed.

Nami blinked. "What… a kid?"

"I… I wanna go home!" the girl wailed. "Mama and Papa must be worried about me… I wanna go home!"

Chopper looked up. "Eh?"

"I wanna go home…" The girl wiped her eyes. "I was trying to run away from Wandolf. He took me from my home a few weeks ago, and he won't let me go-"

The girl's sobbing was abruptly interrupted by Nami whacking her Clima Tact on her head with full force. "Don't lie to me!" Nami snapped. "The innocent act doesn't work on me."

"What?" The girl sniffed. "B-But… I…"

Nami pointed right between her eyes. "No. This Wandolf or whoever probably wouldn't have anything to do with a regular girl like you. And also…" Her eyes darkened. "Those aren't real tears."

"Hmph." The girls eyes suddenly turned cold. "I still don't get how you figured it out. I portrayed all the emotions perfectly."

"No one's that perfect," Nami snapped, swinging at the girl with her Clima Tact again. This time, however, the girl stopped it with one hand. Nami only had time to widen her eyes before she went flying head over heels into the floor.

The girl threw off her cloak, revealing an assortment of weapons on a belt around her waist. "I am Gilda, child genius. I will defeat you pirates here, and get the reward from Wandolf-sama."

Chopper blinked. "Reward?"

Gilda lunged forward, a dagger in hand. "If you're not going to attack, then I will!"

Nami barely rolled out of the way before the knife sank into the stone right where her head had been. "She's fast!"

As Gilda attacked both Chopper and Nami in turn, both of them shared the same thought. Where the hell was everyone else?!

* * *

Robin was wandering around rather leisurely as hands sprouted on the soldiers who were attempting to reach her. She touched the wall with her real hand. "Pure marble walls…" 

Opening a door at random, she found an enraged Brownie dive-bombing Adoni… or attempting to anyways. The little bird was doing his best.

_Stop! Stop it!_ Adoni was yelling. _How am I supposed to think of what to do if you're attacking me like this?!_

Robin chuckled. "Bird-san," she said, "perhaps you should stop."

Brownie cheeped and went to perch on the cannon again.

Adoni winced and brushed himself off. _Thanks. You saved me._

"It was no problem." At this point, Robin noticed something rather important. "Adoni-san, have you realized there are four elderly men sleeping in the corners of this room?"

Adoni blinked. _No, actually…_

It was true. Four ancient men were sitting in the four corners of the room… and sleeping. The little bubbles coming out of their noses proved that fact, though the knobbly walking sticks with knives coming out of them like the teeth of a saw took away from the innocent look.

Adoni sweatdropped. _Erm… what should we do with them?_

Robin shrugged. "They shouldn't be a problem so long as they don't wake up…"

All four bubbles popped. One of the old men opened his eye. "Hrm? We seem to have a guest."

The other three men murmured agreement. "So it seems."

"It seems to be an intruder," one of them said.

The other three murmured in agreement. "So it seems."

"We must do the usual then?" another one of them asked.

"The young lady's here without permission from Wandolf."

"We should do the usual."

"What a pain. I wanted to sleep a little longer."

"Yes, so it seems."

Robin smiled faintly. "So you really can't be seen by those who you don't want to see you."

Adoni gave her a thumbs up. _They can't hear me either._

"The young lady's out of her mind."

"Talking to the air."

"Let's be quick."

"Yes, so it seems."

The old men stood on their shaky old knees, picking up their staffs. "Let's go!"

Adoni pulled the ghostly metal pipe from out of his belt. _Well, at least I won't be completely useless. _He grinned. _Attack them as you like, Robin. Don't worry about me; I can't be hurt by anything. Being dead has a couple advantages._

Robin chuckled before crossing her arms across her chest. "So it would seem."

* * *

Wandolf stirred lightly on his bed, before turning over and snoring loudly. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open and he sat bolt upright, his eyes narrowed. "Someone is trying to steal my prize," he growled. "Damn you, Straw Hats. I won't let you take her away. She's mine." 

**Next: While most of the Straw Hats fight their own battles, Wandolf makes his way to Saya's room to find Luffy, Zoro, and Saya. What's going to happen because of this?**


End file.
